Dragonball Timelines
by shadowwriter01
Summary: Sequel to Dragonball Alternates. Eleven years have passed for Trunks and Eighteen since the end of "Alternates". Since then the Earth of their dimension had been at peace. But now a new enemy has appeared. A conquering Empire with the technology to travel between timelines and universes... and this Empire is ruled by nobody else than an old enemy.
1. Chapter 1: Enemies from somewhere else

**Dragon Ball: Timelines**

 _Mirai timeline (one of them)... 34 years after the first appearance of the Androids  
_

 _17 years after the end of their reign..._

For a long time, life on Earth in Trunks timeline had now been peaceful... and their civilization and the surviving humans had the chance to rebuild and prosper again.

Twelve years had passed since the battle against the Nameless God and his herald the Priest, against the Demon Lord Demigra and also the last fight against Android 17... - eleven years since the failed invasion of Beby and his M2 army.

It had been a time of peace for the remains of the human race that still lived in Trunks timeline.

The long genocide by the hands of the Androids, that ended nearly two decades earlier, had reduced the population to little less than a third of what it had been before their attack... Cell, who had absorbed countless people in his quest to become stronger,... the attack of the Great Ghetty-Star and finally the M2 invasion... had cost countless more lives.

The human race was a shadow of what it once was. But it had started to recover. It had, before **this** had happened.

It had been eleven years of peace... years that had now **ended** just a short time ago.

xxxxxxx

They had always known that it wouldn´t last forever. They never stopped training and preparing for the next possible threat to appear some day.

Trunks, his mother Bulma, Eighteen, once one of his worst enemies and not actually the woman he came to love - to say this was a surprise would be an understatement, their old friend Android Sixteen, who was still in control of the Ghetty Star after merging with the entity years ago... and Trunks and Eighteen´s daughter, who had turned ten years old, not long ago.

xxx

Pan had been named in honor of Trunks old master - after his daughter, who Trunks had seen in one of the other timelines. From her personality as well, she was quite a bit like the girl she was named after, her father thought. Or maybe he just felt the wish to draw similarities to Son Gohan, who never had the chance to have a family of his own. At least not in this world.

Like most part saiyajins, Pan Briefs was eager to fight, a bit aggressive, self-confident and had a good measure of pride. But despite this she was a kindhearted had blue hair, like her grandmother Bulma and light blue eyes, she had gotten from both her parents.

She had not reached the Super Saiyajin level yet. But she was on a similar level as Son Gohan had been before he had reached it in the Room of Spirit and time.

xxx

Another person who was currently with them was Marron, the by now 16 years old daughter of the 18 and Krillin from the last past timeline they had visited. After the death of her parents, she had in a sense become their daughter as well.

In opposite to the first past timeline Trunks had visited - or the `original´ past, how he often called it, the one that ended up with Son Goku and Vegeta both reaching God level... and a form called SSJ4... he and his mother had stayed in regulary contact with this `new´ past for the last 12 years. At least once every year they visited the past timeline or at least send a message.

Marron had been in the unique situation that she had been raised some years in the past by her uncle 17 and some here in the future.

One of the main reason for this was that for a long time, she was not even aware that `Mirai 18´ was not her real mother. As she was a small child, nobody had the heart that her mother had actually died in the battle against The Priest - especially not after her father Krillin did only a few months earlier. So she spend years believing that this 18 was actually her real mother, who had simply started a relationship with Trunks after her father´s death.

It was only a few years ago that she had been told the full truth. It had been more than a shock for her.

The first year after both of her parents had died, she had spend solely with her uncle and his family in the past timeline, while Trunks, 18 and 16 dealt with the threat of Beby and the M2 army in the future. Then, after the safety of the future world was assured - and also after confirming that 18 could in fact be trusted - they visited the past another time. After some time, Trunks and Eighteen decided to adopt the daughter of her counterpart.

Marron had also been trained and thought how to fight by Trunks and her `mother´. She was strong. Stronger than any regular human would have been, they knew. They reason was most likely the genetic engineering, that Doctor Gero had once put her mother through as part of the process to convert her into a Cyborg.

All of them were currently fighting the enemies that had invaded their world.

xxx

Trunks and Android 18 of all people... it could easily be said that nobody in this world would have thought that it would come to this. Even if she and her brother 17 had not been dead for five years at that point.

And it would have **truly** been impossible had it not been for the being known as The Dark Priest - the Priest who had, as they had found out, in truth been an version of Trunks himself. An alternate Trunks who had been both evil, insane and incredible powerful... a twisted and dark God Ki User.

It was this being who had both resurrected the Androids as part of his agenda and in the end - ironically - caused Eighteen and Trunks to fight together for a common goal. Of course her motives back then had not been purely benevolent. A great part of her motivation had simply been her own self-interest. The Priest and his master had attempted to bring universal chaos, something that was a threat to even her survival.

Her brother, who had been planning to betray The Priest, but instead ended up finding the tables turned on him and being turned into a brainwashed and controlled Super Android. If there was one value the Androids, even the ones of this timeline, held - aside of being destructive killing-machines - then it was their own freedom. 18, who had rather seen her brother dead than a controlled slave, she helped the Z-fighters to defeat him.

And since the plans of The Priest and his master could very well mean her own doom as well, she assisted them against them as well.

Her motivations were all but selfless. But it was a step in the right direction. It was only afterwards when she truly began to change. After she had the chance to reflect about her decisions and think about her past actions, as she herself had told Trunks later.

Something that she had never made a secret of - quite ironically - were her newly developed feelings for Trunks, that she had always since her resurrection, after having been dead for five years... Even back when she was still... well, evil.

Not that Trunks had been much different. It was always clear that he had been attracted to her, as his short romance with one of her past timeline doubles had showed. Something that had ended tragically as this 18 had died.

xxxxxxx

And then finally the time where a new threat would arise... had come.

It was kind of ironic that an enemy who had been overcome many decades ago, would turn out to be the bringer of their end.

It was now a few weeks ago that they had the first contact with the Empire. At first it were only a few scouts who had arrived in their world.

For the first moments Trunks and 18 had tried to talk to the four aliens who had suddenly appeared on the Earth. But they nearly instantly announced their intention to annex the planet for their Empire... and themselves... and attacked them as soon as they refused to bow down to them.

That `fight´ had only lasted seconds. That long had it taken the two to annihilate the wannabe invaders.

Trunks easily recognized the armor they had been wearing, it was the same like Freezer´s troops had. At first he had considered the thought that this was just a small remnant from the alien tyrant´s old army... despite their great words of representing an Empire and that it was already over. Still they agreed to all stay vigilant in case it was not.

Nearly a week later they all had been proven painfull that Trunks theory was wrong, as a second larger and stronger group of soldiers appeared on their world. This time it had been Pan and Marron who had met the invaders first, because they were closest to them as this new group suddenly appeared. It was their first fight against an actual enemy, a fight on life and death.

Still the two girls as well, had been more than enough to deal with this new group. Even before Trunks and 18 appeared and joined them, they had been overpowering the aliens by themselves. But not after dozens of civilians being killed in the crossfire. Sadly this second group of attackers had appeared right in the middle of a town.

Marron had commented later - in a fashion similar to her mother - that her clothes had been ruined during the fight.

This short confrontation had however also led to an interesting discovery about their new enemies. The whole time Trunks and the others had asked themselves how the attackers had arrived on Earth in the first place. No matter how hard they looked for it, they were not able to find any landed space-ships.

Even 16 with the sensors of the Ghetty Star, that was currently in orbit, had not been able to locate any signs of it.

Bulma and Trunks had already suspected some kind of long-range teleportation. But Freezer´s Empire had never possessed something like this. So that supported the idea that their new enemy was actually a new independed group, that was somehow connected. Instead of just a small remnant of Freezer´s army.

This idea had been confirmed when the last survivor of the second group had used an device that he carryed on his arm and suddenly a portal apppeared behind him that swallowed the soldier nearly the same moment... and he had disappeared.

Trunks had been starring at the spot for a few moments. Not regular teleportation, but travelling through a portal, he realized.

But that detail was not the reason for his hesitation. No, it was something else. The portal... it looked nearly exactly like the ones they had seen 12 years ago. The last other person he had seen who had been using that kind of transportation - aside of course from themselves... was The Priest.

And Trunks knew that this portal could not only be used to move from one place to the other. No, The Priest had used this method to travel between different universes. 18 had seen it as well. They both knew what this meant.

It meant that their invaders did not even necessarely had to come from their own dimension or timeline, he had thought.

Trunks suspicion was then confirmed a few days ago... then the so called `Empire´ had finally stopped bothering with small groups of scouts and started a major invasion of their world. Entire combat groups just suddenly `appeared´ all around the planet. All of them transported through similar portals.

They had found out when Trunks and 18 had interogated a surviving soldier of one of these groups... after they had decimated it.

What they were facing was in fact nothing else than an attack from **another dimension** , one of the parallel realities.

Even more sure however were they as they saw certain individuals under these troops, who simply should not be around. The most obvious example was as Trunks saw the leader of said invasion-force... Cooler, the brother of Freezer... and dead for decades.

It was not only an invasion from another timeline, but from one where people existed they knew. This alternate version of Cooler however was much - much more powerful than the one Son Goku had defeated many years ago. In fact, his power was actually bordering to that of God level... as Trunks and his allies had found out during their first meeting and the following fight.

Still he was not acting on his own accord. Even this version of Cooler, despite his power, was answering to someone else, someone his troops just referred to as `the Emperor´... something that they had simply overheard from the enemies talking to each other.

It didn´t take long for them however to find out who this Emperor was - Not that they had not already suspected it before - nobody else than Freezer himself, as they found out from the alternate Cooler himself.

It was no real surprise. By what his father Vegeta had once told his mother and the other Z-fighters, Freezer had always been considered the strongest member of his family (aside from Cooler´s secret fifth form of course, that nobody even knew about)... and Freezer was clearly the most cruel and vicious one.

It was only with Trunks direct confrontation with the alien warlord, when he had found out the identity of their new foe for sure...

xxx

The battle was still going on... spread on several places all across the planet.

It had begun a few hours before, just as their new enemies had finally started a full scale invasion. The picture was practically the same in all places.

Everywhere - at hundreds of places at once - alien soldiers had appeared and were attacking and ransacking everything and everybody that they came across. And practically everywhere they were being challenged by the defenders of the planet.

At the beginning, the first groups of invaders that appeared were quickly being exterminated. The soldiers, on a similar level as Freezer´s ground or elite-troops from 30 years ago, were completely outmatched against opponents like Trunks, Android 18 or 16 and his hundreds of Ghetty-metall robots. They, together with Pan and Marron, were quickly dispatching the enemies everywhere.

It was not after the next wave had been send in, that the course of the battle had started to change. This new invaders were not the simple soldiers that had been send before. It was something far more dangerous. What appeared were small groups of seemingly human individuals. But they sensed instantly that they weren´t... not anymore.

All in all it were more than two dozen... and even more were still arriving. This new opponents were not radiating any ki. The strength of any of them rivalled or surpassed that of a regular Super Saiyajin. As it looked, the `Empire´ possessed their own versions of the Androids. Of course they were not nearly as powerful as 18 or even Trunks had become over the years, but it was more than enough to deal with 16´s Ghetty troops and fight them to an stand-still.

xxx

Trunks and 18 meanwhile were confronted by the alien-warlord himself.

"So it is true?" Eighteen stated. "You are truly from another universe."

"I guess there is sense to try to hide it," Cooler responded. "Unless you think I came back from the dead or something, right?"

Trunks scoffed. Exactly that had truly happened years ago, when the borders to the Afterlife had been temporally broken.

"Are you ready?" he asked 18.

"Of course I am Trunks-darling," she replied. "You know me."

"I have to say I am surprised," Trunks stated. "I had never thought that your race could be this strong."

He had actually met another version of Cooler years ago. Back when the super-computer called Ne-Me-Sys and The Priest had temporally disturbed the borders between the world of the living and the Afterlife and the dead came back to life for a short time. That other version of him had been far behind Trunks strength. And that was **before** he reached God level.

This one came actually close to rivalling the power he possessed now.

"The same to you," Cooler replied. "It seems the legend of the Super Saiyajin is actually true. More than just true actually... if I look at your current power," he stated.

Freezer´s brother was standing in front of them, together with a small group of elite Soldiers trio of Empire Androids. 18 alone could have deal with them easily of course. It was Cooler himself who was the problem.

"Tell me, how have you gotten so strong?" Trunks asked him. "The version of you we thought in this universe was not nearly in your league."

"All too true," Cooler admitted. "You could say we have to thank my brother for that. You see for a long time it was true that our family was kind of lazy with our powers. That was until Freezer had faced the first Super Saiyajin... and was outmatched by him. Well, at least my brother was smart enough to blow up the planet they were on. So that he removed the Super Saiyajin from the picture nearly instantly."

"I see," Trunks stated. In their world Goku might have died when Freezer had blown up Namek, or maybe someone else had become the first Super Saiyajin. Or the fight Cooler was talking about might have taken place on a completely different world. Who knew?

"Afterwards he suggested that our entire family takes some rigerous training. So we all grew a bit stronger. Then later, after `Little Brother´ killed our father and took over as Emperor, we took it up another notch you could say. The outcome is what you see here," Cooler stated, while flaring his tremendous ki.

"Do you always talk this much?" Trunks asked him.

"Not always. Only if I think it could be interesting," the alien replied.

During this short exchange, 18 had already managed to take the group of Cooler´s soldiers out. All three of the Androids were about as strong as she had originally been. But **she** had improved a thousand times since then.

She simply blasted the regular soldiers away with a single volley of ki and then easily dispatched the Androids. And then she took position right next to Trunks.

"Ah, it seems your Android is working far better than our models," Cooler commented as he saw her win. "Maybe we should keep her alive and hand her to our scientists to take her apart after we won this battle."

"Shut up," Trunks growled at him.

"Oh, can it be that you are close to that particular model? Well, she is quite attactive by the standards of you humanoids. So I guess she could serve **this** function as well," Cooler taunted him.

"We will get your hands off her... and by the way, you **won´t** win this battle," the saiyan responded.

"Really?" Cooler asked mockingly. "I wouldn´t be so sure. You know saiyajin, you should never underestimate your opponent. Your arrogance had already many of your kind their lives."

"As if you should talk about arrogance," Trunks remarked. "And if you are hinting at your `secret´ fifth form here, I fear I already know about it."

For a short moment, Cooler looked distraught. But only a second later he caught himself again.

"So my double in this world had used it as well... and he was still beat. Too bad. But you will see I am now far superior to my other self." With this words he started to transform into his fifth and last form. Spikes were growing out of his elbows, a crown of sharp horns were appearing around his face, that was now covered by a organic battlemask made of bones. And his already terrifying power doubled once again.

"If you think you can intimidate me? think again," Trunks stated. "Leave him to me," he said to 18.

The female Android send him a side-look.

"You can not do much here. Go better and help 16 and the girls. They are barely holding the enemy back," he told her. "This is my fight."

She glared at him for a moment. But she knew he was right. Having continued to train for the last 12 years, she was now able to defeat even opponents of the level of Buu. But the kind of power the alien was radiating right now was too much even for her.

She would be of more help if she assisted 16. He and his ghetty robots, who were facing the enemies at dozens of places at once, were hard pressed to deal with the number of the attackers right now, especially their Android forces.

"How typical saiyajin. Always making everything about yourself," she commented grinning. But then her expression softened. "Take care of yourself," she said to him... and he draw her closer and they exchanged a short kiss. "Good luck."

In the same second she flew off with full speed in the direction of the most heavy fighting.

"Quite feisty your Cyborg mistress," Cooler commented. "I can understand why you like her. Well, if I were another species, than I would maybe..."

"Cooler, I said it before... you talk too much," Trunks called out. He now powered up to his full strength as well and charged at him. He landed a heavy blow that send the alien flying backwards.

His opponent came to an halt a few hundred meters away from him in the air.

"It seems I have underestimated you saiyajin," he admitted. "You have been holding back the whole time."

"Just like you. Come on Cooler," Trunks challenged him.

xxxxxxx

 _In another timeline and universe, the planet Freezer-X... formerly Earth_

In this version of reality Freezer had won the battle on the planet Namek. One year later, after he had been found drifting in space by his father King Cold, they arrived together on Earth, defeated the surviving Z-fighters and exterminated the native population of the planet.

Given that it had been the home of his greatest opponent, the super saiyajin and with that the symbol of his greatest victory, Freezer decided to make this planet his new capital.

It was a few years later that he assassinated his father Cold and declared himself Emperor of a new, reformed, Empire. One that would not simply conquer planets, wipe out their populations and sell them off or keep them for themselves. But one that would reach absolute and complete power over the entire universe.

And then later beyond the borders of their own universe. When the imperial scientiests had discovered the technology to travel between realities only a few years ago.

It was in this moment that the Emperor was receiving an report about the ongoing invasion.

"Your Majesty, we have got information from Lord Cooler´s troops," a servant - a member of a toad-like reptilian species - who had just entered the room informed his master.

"And... tell me - how is my brother doing?" Freezer asked smugly.

"The - the campaign is not going as well as expected," the servant replied hesitatly. He knew that the people who brought bad news to Emperor Freezer were not exactly in a good position. And sometimes they had the habbit not to survive. "It seems that Lord Cooler´s troops have met heavier resistance as expected. The troops have already lost several battle units and even several Androids. An-and by the reports Lord Cooler has engaged the enemy in person," he said nervously.

"Has he?" Freezer remarked grinning. "Now, maybe it will do him some good, right? I guess my brother can really need a work-out. Is that everything?"

"Y-yes my Lord. May I leave now?" the creature asked, still fearfully.

"You may. In fact, I won´t need your services anymore. You can take off for some time. Now leave me alone. I have other matters to attend to."

"As you wish your Majesty," the servant said and bowed. "Thank you, my Lord. Thank you." He bowed again.

"Oh, one last thing. I find your grovelling annoying. If I think about it, you can leave my service for good." With this words and a simple blink of his eyes, he send a wave of ki energy at the creature, that instantly killed the unfortunate servant and disintigrated his body.

"So Cooler has joined the battle himself," Freezer stated. "Does that mean there is actually someone who can challenge him in this world? Either way, it is something we should take care of."

xxxxxxx

 _Somewhere else in the multiverse_

 _10 years after the end of the Androids - In **another** Mirai timeline_

Trunks and the person standing next to him, were on their way back to Capsule Corporation. But even the way back was dangerous.

They had prepared everything for his planned departure. To return to the past once again, for the first time since the fight against Cell. In this world the appearance of The Priest and the AI Ne-Me-Sys and all the following events, never happened. In their place however, another dangerous enemy had appeared.

Trunks nodded to the dark haired young woman next to him, who was holding a machine gun. They had nearly made it.

But then they were suddenly being attacked. A ki blast hit the ground close to them.

"Mai," Trunks called out as he saw the woman stumbling and falling to the ground.

He could sense the ki of their enemy close by.

* * *

Like it was said, this story is a sequel to Dragonball Alternates. In the Mirai timeline that was featured in the last story, it plays 11 years after the end of Alternates. Trunks and 18, who had become a pair at the end of the last story, have a daughter - named after Pan. But she is not the same character in any form, but a OC.

Like you can guess after the last paragraph. I will also include elements from Super, especially the Future Trunks Arc, into this story.

Marron - the one from the past timeline of the last story - will also play a role.


	2. Chapter 2: Destruction

**Chapter 2**

 _Mirai timeline (the first one)_

The fight between Trunks and Cooler, in his last form, was still going on. The two were struggling with each other, in the air above the battlefield, in hand to hand combat.

Now however, the half-saiyajin was quickly beginning to gain the upper hand.

The truth was simply, while the Alien Warlord was not so far away from God Level, he was not quite on **it**. Trunks on the other side, had possessed Divine Ki for over a decade. He had mastered it.

Fifth transformation form or not - special training, together with his brother or not - there was not longer a doubt, Cooler was loosing this fight. And he was loosing it badly.

One punch by Trunks, landed right into his face, had enough force to completely overcome all his defensive ki... and send him flying, crashing into the ground.

As, a moment later, the alien was crawling out of his rubble that his own impact had caused and standing up again, Trunks had already appeared next to him, in the blink of an eye.

Before Cooler could react, he grapped both of his arms and squeezed down on them hard, causing his opponent to grimace in barely suppressed pain.

"I am giving you one last warning," Trunks told him coldly. "Gather your troops and draw back from this planet. Then I will spare your life. You see it yourself, I am stronger than you."

The alien tried to free himself.

"You shouldn´t be so overconfident, saiyajin," he finally replied. "You might be right. I have no chance against you in a direct confrontation. But there are always other ways." He grinned.

Trunks realized quickly was his opponent meant. It was nothing new actually. Freezer - the Freezer of this world - had done the same thing in his fight against Goku on Namek years ago. In the moment it didn´t look that he could win the fight anymore, he fired a blast at the core of the planet.

If he remembered right, the Freezer he fought against in the first past timeline, he visited, had actually tried to do exactly the same thing on Earth, but he had stopped him. So there was a good chance that his brother here would try something similar as well.

But Trunks was sure about one thing. He wouldn´t let that happen.

"I know what you are thinking about," he told him.

Without any hesitation, he pressed down on the arms of the alien even harder... until he heard the bones break.

Cooler was crying out in pain.

"W-what? - You," he growled.

"Like I said, I have dealt with your brother in the past. I know one of his tactics, whenever he is cornered, was to simply blow up the planet he was standing on and escape into space. I just wanted to keep you from trying the same thing." Trunks grinned. "And now surrender. Or this is your end."

For a second his opponent was starring at him in pure hatred. But then his expression changed and he smiled back at him.

xxxxxxx

At other parts of the planet, Eighteen, Pan, Marron and the various drones of Sixteen were still fighting the enemy troops.

Like Trunks, they had started to gain the upper hand. They all easily outmatched Coolers regular troops and 18 by herself was many times superios than the Androids of the invading army. One thing that worried her however, was how similar these Androids were to her own `construction´ - created from humans.

This was clearly Doctor Gero´s design. Did that mean that the Gero of their dimension was working with Freezer´s family? Or had the `Empire´ just somehow gotten their hands on his designs?

To their luck though, it didn´t seemed that these Androids had ever actually trained... and they were still at their initial strength after their conversion. Beside that, by her impression, they also didn´t seem too smart. As she had found out in a few short interchanges with them. She suspected that the Empire had done something to limit their free will and make them more obedient - convenient slaves. But this maybe at the cost of independent thinking, she suspected.

In this moment she blasted another two of the enemy Androids away, while two of 16´s Ghetti robots were dealing with another squad of soldiers close to them.

xxx

Several miles away, close to Central City, Pan and Marron were currently fighting together against another group of invaders.

As Pan´s mother 18 and part of 16´s robots were dealing with the Androids that were part of the Invasion Force, they were busy taking care of the `lesser threats´.

Trunks was stronger than the enemy commander. Eighteen was far superior to their Androids and the Ghetti Star robots - those supply was nearly unlimited, as long as 16 could produce them - could at least hold themselves against them... and even Marron and Pan, while not on their level, were at least far above the regular alien warriors.

With other words, they were winning the battle... and that quite sovereign and without greater risk of loosing their own lives. Their only losses so far were Ghetti robots, that had been destroyed fighting some of Cooler´s Androids.

xxxxxxx

"Not bad saiyajin," Cooler stated. "But I fear you were not thinking wide enough." He grinned... and raised his now broken arm up.

"Android X-15, Order: A-1," he spoke into his communicator.

Before he could say anything more, Trunks charged at him flying and rammed him into the gut with both outstretched fists. But the harm was already done.

"What have you done?" he shouted angrily.

"Your idea was right. But you just oversaw one thing. I don´t need to blow up this planet personally, to destroy it," the defeated Alien told him full of spite.

"Damn it," Trunks yelled in anger.

xxxxxxx

On the other side of the globe - far away from any of the battle-zones - stood a single Android, who had been transported to this dimension at the same time as the other troops, but unnoticed by anyone.

In opposite to all the others, he had only a single purpose in the battle... standing here and waiting in case he received one special command.

It was a measure in case the unthinkable happened - that the forces of the Empire would actually be beaten.

As he received the order from his master, the Android followed it without any moment of thought or hesitation... and charged a ki blast to fire it downwards to the core of the planet.

xxxxxxx

"Cooler," Trunks hissed now coldly at his opponent, standing before him. He send out a wave of ki energy, that pushed the crippled alien away from him and send him flying into the air.

"Go to Hell," he shouted... and send a ki blast with all his power after him, that completely annihilated him.

`Eighteen,´ he send out a telepathic message moments later, `Pan, Marron, do you hear me? I have just defeated Cooler. But before I could stop him he send an order to an Android somewhere to blow up the planet. Do you understand?´ he asked urgently. `I don´t know which Android it is or where he is?If you see anything, please, do everything to stop it.´

But it was already too late.

They all felt the Earth trembling beneath them. The Android had done what he was ordered, without a concern about the people of this planet or even his own survival.

xxxxxxx

"No," Trunks called out as he fully realized what was happening. He had failed, again.

The Earth, the people he had sworn to protect, they were doomed. He had defeated Cooler. But it meant **nothing** now.

`It is not your fault Trunks," 18 said to him telepathically. `You couldn´t have known this. None of us could have predicted that they would actually do something like this. You couldn´t have prevented this.´

On a logical side Trunks knew she was right. How could he have known that Cooler would have given some Android a **prepared** order to destroy the planet, just `in case´ they were loosing. It was just too insane. But logic did very little to calm him down right now.

`Go to the Portal,´ he finally told the others. `Mother,´ he send another call out to Bulma back home, `you need to activate it, as quickly as possible.´

`I understand,´ Bulma replied.

`The Portal?´ he heard Pan questioning. `But...´

`What about all the other people?´ Marron was asking.

`The Portal´ was a device his mother had developed over the last decade, after having before spend years, mostly helping with the rebuilding of the planet. It was - as you could say - the younger brother of Trunks time-machine.

After finding out about beings who - like The Priest or some of the Gods - who were able to travel not just through time, but also to different timelines and universes, his mother Bulma had started to play with the idea to develop something similar for themselves and eventually combine it with the time-travelling they already had. Of course they didn´t have anything comparible to the supernatural powers this beings possessed, who in some cases could open interdimansional portals with a wave of their hand. The device Bulma had developed was simply a machine. But it was able to fulfill it´s purpose.

And right now it was the savest way to espace the already doomed planet.

`If you meet anyone on your way, take them with you,´ he said to them.

`But that will still only save a few people,´ Pan replied. `What about the entire rest?´

`Pan, Marron,´ Trunks told them telepathically, `I know how you feel. I truly do,´ he thought grimly. But he forced himself to think straight. `Maybe we still have a chance to save Earth - to bring it back later - if we find a set of Dragonballs somewhere. But for that we need to survive first,´ he said. `Go to the Portal. Me, your mother and your grandmother will meet you there.´

`Okay Dad,´ Pan finally replied.

Trunks clenched his teeth. He hated this just as much as his daughters - well, his daughter and his stepdaughter. It felt as if he had just told them to leave everyone else to die. But he knew the only chance they had, was to find the Dragonballs later and use them to recreate the Earth and revive everyone. But for that they needed to live.

Still, they would try to do as much as they could, as long there was time.

xxxxxxx

The construct Bulma had simply called the Portal was standing in a basement, deep under the new wing of the Capsule Corp building, that had been build during the last decade. Like the name suggested, it was a portal based time- and dimension-travelling device.

On the first look, it was a large half-circle made out of silvery metal - that was the actual `door´ - connected with computers, generators and various control instruments. The metallic bow was constructed to channel the energy and concentrate it. So the opening between the realities was formed in the center of the half-circle the metal formed.

In opposite to Trunks normal time-machine, it was able to reach not only different `timelines´, that meant variations of their own Universe 7, but also the other 11 `basic Universes´ that their Multiverse was made out of. And in opposite to Trunks machine, it was also able to reach ths world in the present, when they wanted, instead of in another time period. It was able to bridge both time and space in the same manner.

And it was able to create a stable corridor between the realities, that actually allowed it to transport large objects or like in this case, larger groups of people, from one world to the other. With other words, it was exactly what they needed right now.

At the same time however it also took far more energy to operate than the regular time machine. For that reason they had only actually activated it a few times during the last years.

xxx

Right now Bulma was running to the machine, to activate it. Right after she had given her direct neighbors a call to warn them that a disaster is going to happen and told them to come to the entrance of the basement and wait for her.

But for the moment she needed to get the Portal working before Trunks and the others arrived, with very likely even more people to get to safety... and even more important, she needed to do it before the entire planet would explode around them.

xxx

Trunks landed in front of his home. Above his hear however, he had been lifting a car with a small family inside, that he had been carrying. He had seen them on the way and informed them about the danger. Being that Trunks was the known World Savior and protector of the planet, they had of course believed them. He placed the vehicle on the ground, before running to the door.

Seconds later he was followed by Eighteen and Sixteen, with his primary body and two others, each of them carrying two persons. Marron and Pan arrived only a minute afterwards as well. They were bringing a old woman and a child along, they had found on their way.

So in all they had brought 13 people, they were saving. Them and their neighbors who Bulma had called earlier. That were another 8 people. So 21 - It wasn´t much. But they would not be the only ones. There was one last thing.

"Sixteen," Trunks addressed him, just after opening the gates of the building, "bring the Ghetti Star into a save distance to Earth. But before, order your drones to bring as many people to safety as possible. And then take course to the planet New Namek. When we want to bring back Earth later, we need the Dragonballs - any set of them we can get.

If you don´t hear from us soon, then it is possible that we will have run into some problems in the past. No matter that. Whatever happens, continue on your way to New Namek. We will take care of ourselves."

"Yes Trunks I will. Trust me," he said.

"I do. That is why I ask you to do this. We will return to the past. We will try to contact you when we have arrived."

When Trunks said the past, he meant more precisely, not the original past he had travelled to all those years ago, but the same past-timeline they had been in regular contact with for the last twelve years. The same one where Marron came from.

"Mother," he called to her as he ran down into the basement, the others going after him. "Is the machine ready? We need to leave."

"Yes Trunks," she called back.

The ground was once again trembling beneath their feet. It wouldn´t take long anymore.

"It is," Bulma said, as she saw them coming. "One second, I am just activating it."

The normal people with them were starring with open mouths as they saw the device being activated and a wormhole - a gateway between the dimensions - was being formed right in front of them.

"What is this?" one young woman - who was leading a small child on her hand - asked. as they had arrived in the hall, right in front of the Portal.

"A way out of here," Trunks responded.

She, like the others, was looking in shock at the energy vortex before them, that connected their reality to another place. They all had heard the rumors about the strange experiments that were taking place at Capsule Corp. After the Androids and the two alien invasions from a decade ago, it was truly hard to still surprise the people.

But this here was something different. The Briefs family however, had seen the Portal being activated a few times before. So it wasn´t **that** amazing to them.

"Where are you bringing us?" the same woman wanted to know.

"To a save place," Trunks assured her.

In this moment they heard a explosion coming from the outside. It looked as if some of Cooler´s troops were still attacking, even when the planet would soon be blowing up under their feet. So they either didn´t realize the danger or they were simply too fanatical to care. Or - one last possibility came to his mind - they were simply more frightened by their leaders and what they would do to them if they retreated, than they were by a exploding world.

"Mother, Pan, Marron, bring these people out of here," he said. "18 come, we will take care of whoever this is."

She nodded to him.

Their daughters and Bulma were now starting to lead the, still overwhelmed and completely frightened, civilians through the opened dimensional gateway.

xxxxxxx

 _In space_

At the same time, in Earth´s orbit, Sixteen and his robot army had already borded the Ghetti Star, that was now heading away from the planet, to open space.

All in all they had managed to save a few hundred people as well, who were now on bord of the giant interstellar construct.

Like Trunks had instructed him, he would be taking course to New Namek. He only hoped that the others would bring themselves to safety quickly. But like he had told Trunks, he trusted him and the others.

xxxxxxx

 _West City - Earth_

Trunks figured out quickly that his guesses had been wrong. The reason why some of Cooler´s troops were still here was neither fanatism, stupidity or fear. It was simply that they were mindlessly following their programming.

As they came outside, they saw that it was a trio of the Androids of the invasion force, that were rampaging through West City. And in opposite to actually fully sentient Androids like 18 or 16, they simply lacked the self-preservation sense to retreat, unless they were being ordered.

To make matters worse, one of them had just fired a ki blast, that had impacted very close to the Caspsule Corp building... and might have cause who knew what kind of damage.

"We need to take them out and that quickly," 18 said to him.

"I know," he replied.

Trunks moved with nearly his full speed and appeared right in front of one of the Androids and blasted him away. He realized somewhere in his mind that it was the same moved that he killed 18 with, many years ago. It was a memory that had over time become less triumphant and more painful to him, looking back at it. Still he would never regret what he had done back then. Like he would never forget how evil 18 used to be.

But she was not longer the same person as back then... and the person she had become, he had grown to love.

The same Eighteen had meanwhile moved to destroy the other two Androids, a man and a woman. At least that was what they had once been, before they had been turned into what they were now.

xxxxxxx

 _Inside_

At the same time, inside another tremor was going through the building. But this time it was not the planet, it was the blast that one of the Androids had fired into the town.

The last of the civilians had just, after overcoming their fear... and after being told that their planet was just minutes away from exploding, passed trough the gate, that led them into the past.

But right then, the attack caused the computer to suddenly malfunction. Then, from one moment to the other, the lights in the room went out. The wormhole disappeared and the entire machine went dead.

"What had happened?" Marron wanted to know.

"The impact must have hit the energy supply," Bulma stated. "The system had just collapsed."

"Does that mean we are trapped here?" Pan asked in panic. "We will die."

"Don´t panic," Bulma tried tocalm them down. "I just have to start the system again. It will just take a minute."

"But the planet is exploding," Marron said.

"I know," she replied. "I just hope that we have enough time."

xxxxxxx

 _16 years earlier - in another timeline_

Back in the past, the Z-fighters of that time had just been receiving the refugees from the future timeline - right after they had gotten a message send by Future Bulma, that had informed them what was going on in her time.

They had activated the counterpart of the Portal in their world, that the Bulma of their time had build in cooperation with her future-self a few years before.

The machine was standing in a similar basement under the building, like the one that existed in the future timeline.

Here, the native Bulma, along with Son Gohan, Son Goten and this time´s version of Trunks, were welcoming their new `guests´, as the portal suddenly shut down.

xxx

Also present were Piccolo and the Android 17 of this world, who had become a closer ally and was actually cooperating with the Z-fighters regulary after the battle against The Priest and the death of his sister.

They however were currently waiting in one of the other rooms, mostly to not send the refugees into an even greater panic as they already were. The presence of one of the Androids that devastated their world and a green skinned Alien would certainly not be helpful.

But as they had heard that the machine suddenly malfunctioned, 17 had enough and went over to the others, no matter how some people might react.

"Bulma, what the heck is going on here?" he called out, while bursting into the room.

He was taking a look at the people who had just fled their world and their time - in some cases without even fully realizing it yet. Luckily, so far nobody seem to recognize him.

But that was not what was really important to him right not. What truly mattered to him was who was **not** under them.

"I don´t know. The connection was suddenly cut off. But whatever it is, the cause is on the other side," she replied.

"Does that mean the Earth of the other time is gone?" Piccolo asked. He had entered the room right after 17.

"I don´t think so. By what my other self said, it should have still taken a few minutes for them until that happened."

"But that means Marron and the others are still trapped on the other side," 17 stated impatiently. "We need to do something."

"I know," Bulma answered. "But I fear there is very little that **we** can do from here. The only chance is if they manage to build up the connection again."

* * *

 **This is finally chapter 2.**

 **I want to thank Raos again for recommending this story.**


	3. Chapter 3: Meetings

**Chapter 3  
**

 _Mirai timeline (the first one)_

Bulma worked desperately to get the Portal working again. She knew there were only minutes left - maybe less. Then it would be all over.

Another tremor was going through the ground below them and through the entire building.

Finally the machine reactivated itself before them.

She had done it, Bulma thought with relief. The portal formed itself in front of them once again.

"Trunks, it is ready," she called to him.

They saw how the wormhole was being build up in front of them once again. The connection to the Multiverse - and with that to the other timeline - had returned... and so did their own way to safety.

But at the same time the tremors going through the planet had become even worse. The ground was shaking beneath them nearly every second.

"Mother, is everything alright with the Portal?" Trunks asked her.

"I - I am not completely sure," Bulma admitted. "The system is working, but I don´t get a response from it´s counterpart in the past. I am getting some strange data here."

"What do you mean?" he wanted to know.

"Moment, the system has now locked on a target," she said. "But I am still not getting a response. That means..."

An explosion was to hear close by. They had no time left. Even if the planet wouldn´t explode any moment, it was clear that enemy troops were close by. They normal soldiers out of Coolers troops would probably try to flee as soon as they realized what was going on - but the Androids, by what he had seen of them, would stay and cause mayhem till the last moment and not care if they perished as well.

And all what it would take was a single stray shot to leave the Portal useless and they were all lost.

They needed to leave **now**.

"It doesn´t matter," Bulma stated. "Go through the Portal, I have to take a look at the controls. I will come right after you," she said to them.

A part of Trunks wanted to ask his mother what she had just meant. But he knew she was right. They did not have a single moment to loose.

"Pan and Marron, you go first," 18 told them. "Now," she said in a serious tone that didn´t allow any disagreement.

Trunks was standing next to her, looking equally serious.

Both girls nodded and then run with actual superhuman speed through the opened gate. A moment later both girls were gone.

"Come," he said to 18... right before another tremor shook the room and somehow... the wormhole before them seemed to fluctuate for a moment. But neither of them seemed to have noticed. Not that it made a difference. They needed to leave and they had only moments left.

18 shot forward. Before Bulma could protest even say anything else, the Cyborg had already grabbed her and carried her flying through the open Portal.

Trunks smiled a bit as he saw what his lover had just done. And he followed them just a second later he followed them.

Another two seconds later - as Trunks, Eighteen and the others had left this time and reality - the entire building - together with the dimension-travelling device - was destroyed as the ground broke apart and swallowed not only it, but all of West City. Fire broke out from the open rifts in the Earth´s crust.

Moments later the entire planet exploded and all what was left on Earth, including Cooler´s remaining troops... ceased to exist.

xxxxxxx

They all found themselves somewhere else...

As 18 looked around she realized that she was definitely not where she was supposed to be. Next to her, Bulma instantly came to the same conclusion.

"Damn it," she said, "I knew something was wrong."

One thing was clear. They were not in the past where they were suppossed to be... At least not in the past they had wanted to reach.

Instead - at least on the first look - they could think they were still at home. Or at least in her own timeline.

Only that they weren´t... at least not at the point where they had started.

This was clear, simply because the planet they were standing on was **not** about to explode. They also didn´t see any traces of the army of aliens that had been invading their world.

But what they saw as they looked around reminded them both all too much of what they had seen during their lives - Or in 18´s case, caused it in the first place... ruins, destruction. They were somewhere close to the outer areas of West City, so much was clear. But the City was looking like during the tme of the Android´s reign.

Most of the buildings they could make out were either damaged or completely destroyed. Craters - caused by the impacts of ki blasts - were to see at some places.

Of course all these damage could have, in theory, also been caused by Cooler´s army. But since there was not a single alien to see, they thought this was very unlikely.

Had they somehow landed in their own past instead of the other timeline? they asked themselves. Or was this a completely different universe alltogether.

The Portal must have malfunctioned. So much was clear. Where in the world were they?

And even more important... where were the others? They had been looking around, but Trunks, Marron and Pan were nowhere to see.

xxxxxxx

Something was strange. They both had realized that very quickly.

Instead of the normal comfortable trip through the Portal, as they were used to, they had literally been thrown out on the other side of the wormhole and crashed somewhere on the ground.

"Damn it," Pan cursed. "What the hell was that?"

As they stood up and watched around however, they saw that instead inside of the underground lab of the past Capsule Corp, they had materialized a short distance outside of West City.

There was however nothing to see of the attacking alien army... and the town was completely undamaged. As far as they could make out, it was actually in a better state than it had ever been in the future timeline.

They were in the past, so much was clear. But simply not at the place where they had meant to arrive.

"There must have something gone wrong," Pan said. "Where are Mom and Dad and Grandma Bulma?" she asked with some fear.

"Let us hope they had arrived inside the building, like we were **meant** to," Marron told her reassuringly. But she could not help to feel the same fear coming up inside her. If the transport had gone wrong somehow and they had been separated, then it was also not sure if the others had even arrived in this world at all.

Pan nodded.

"Let us fly home to Capsule Corp and look if they are there," she called out.

Both of the girls rose up into the air and flew in the direction of the counterpart of the same building they had just been a few moments ago.

xxxxxxx

18 and Bulma had been walking through the devastated landscape for a few minutes now.

They had decided not to fly, just in case they had truly somehow been send back to the time of the Android terror... and Eighteen didn´t want to cause a mass panic by just being seen flying around over the town.

She admitted, she felt terrible about the idea that the destruction they had seen on their way might have been caused by her and 17´s counterparts. Back then she had enjoyed every minute of it and never gave a thought about the horror they caused to everyone else. But not... after she had seen how it is to be the victim herself...?

She was also worried about Trunks, Pan and Marron.

"I guess there is not much else we can do, right Bulma?" 18 said.

"Yes," she replied. "Even if we have somehow landed in the wrong time period - or even in the wrong timeline," Bulma admitted. "The only way to get out of it would be to find my current counterpart and ask her to help us."

"If you are even existing here," 18 countered.

"Don´t even start like that," Bulma responded. "If I - or at least Capsule Corp and my lab and equipment aren´t here, I have no idea what we should do."

Then suddenly, they heard an explosion. It was coming from before them... just a short distance away from where their home was.

"Damn it - no matter if this is now me and 17 or someone else, it seems that there is an enemy here," 18 stated.

"You are right," Bulma said. "We should see if we can do something to help."

"You mean I will help and you will be standing at the sidelines," 18 commented sarcastically.

"I think we have no time for sarcastic comments here Eighteen," Bulma countered.

"One point for you," the Android admitted.

xxx

A minute later they arrived at the source of the explosion... and what they found were two figures, standing on the otherwise empty streets.

One of them was a dark haired young woman in a light brown - military looking - coat, who was pointing a rifle at the other figure. Bulma thought that she looked somewhat familiar, but she couldn´t place her.

The other figure - who was just preparing a ki blast in his hand to eliminate the woman - was... Son Goku?

xxxxxxx

 _Past timeline...?_

Marron and Pan were just landing in front of the Capsule Corp. building. Like they had expected, someone was already waiting for them at the outside.

They had not made much effort to hide their energies. Their was no reason to. They wanted to notice the Z-fighters from the past that they had arrived after all.

But as they realized who was awaiting them, it not only surprised, but completely shocked them.

Standing before them were not Son Gohan, their uncle 17 or even Piccolo... or any of the other Z-fighters they would have expected in the time period they had wanted to reach. Insteas it were... Son Goku and Vegeta.

"G-Goku, Vegeta?" Marron stammered. "But y-you are both dead... for years. And..."

"You are Vegeta," Pan said in awe, "and you Son Goku?" In opposite to Marron, she knew the two legendary warriors only from pictures. "But you both died before I was born. That means?"

"We must have landed in the wrong timeline," Marron stated, summarizing both their thoughts.

"Yes, so much is obvious," Vegeta remarked sardonically. "You girl, you are Krillin´s brat Marron, aren´t you?" he addressed her.

"Well, yes - but..."

"I see."

"You mean we have two more time-travellers here Vegeta?" Goku questioned.

"It certainly looks like it," he replied. "This girl here has the same energy as Krillin´s and the Android´s daughter. And the other one is clearly a Saiyajin. Unless you have a better explanation? Especially since they are showing up here at the same time as Trunks did."

"Trunks? You mean...?" Marron exclaimed.

"Dad is here?" Pan called out.

"Dad?" Vegeta now said in surprise.

"Yes... and it is a honor to meet you... grandfather," Pan stated.

"This only caused Goku to grin.

"Don´t even start Kakarot," Vegeta said.

In this moment another group of people appeared. The first two of them were a cat-like alien being and a tall man with pale blue skin and white hair. Both of them showed clearly signs of Divine Ki. They were pretty sure this had to be Beerus, the God of Destruction and his assistent Whiz... two beings they had only heard of out of stories.

Then there were four children. Three of them they didn´t know. The first was the younger counterpart of their father Trunks. Then there was a dark haired girl, a young short sized man-fox and the last a strange blue skinned boy.

But the last person was... Trunks. He was standing before them, wearing his usual Capsule Corp jacket and carrying his sword on his back.

But somehow, something was screaming at the two girls that something was off about him.

Right now however, Pan didn´t care.

"Dad," she cried out happily. "I am so glad you have made it."

Trunks response however shocked her even more.

"Sorry..." he said, "but, who are you?"

"Dad, how can you not recognize me?" she cried out horrified. "It is me, Pan."

"Pan?" he asked.

After all what had already happened, he admitted, he was outnerved to see on top of it all this two young girls. One of them was clearly a saiyajin-hybrid, just like himself. The other one, a blonde girl who was wearing her hair in twin-ponytails, had a striking ressemblance to Android 18, what unsettled him even more. Though she was clearly human, even if she was very strong. Both of them were clothes that came clearly from Capsule Corporation, but he had never seen them before.

One of them even claimed that he was her father.

"Wait," Marron said. "Ahm Trunks, how did you arrive here?"

"He just arrived in his time-machine," Goku explained. "How else?"

"The time-machine?" Marron exclaimed. Their Trunks would have arrived through the Portal. That means he would have just appeared through a wormhole, like them. That must mean...

"Pan, this - this is not our father," she said. "This Trunks must be from another timeline, one where you never existed."

"Moment," Vegeta suddenly asked.

"What do you mean, **your** father?" he, Goku and the other Trunks asked at the same time.

xxxxxxx

 _Future timeline...?_

18 and especially Bulma couldn´t quite believe what they were seeing. Here was Son Goku, or at least someone who looked exactly like him, ready to murder a human woman.

"Goku, what the hell are you doing?" Bulma called out. She just couldn´t help herself.

"Bulma," the girl called out as they turned around to them, "thank Kami that you are okay. We thought you were dead."

"Kami?" the Goku like figure repeated. "Don´t sully the name of the Gods with your ignorant words you filthy mortal," he hissed. Then he looked at Bulma. "Hmm, I was sure that I killed you. Well, it should be easy to correct that mistake, right?"

But in the same moment, 18 had already reacted. She had moved forward with all her speed and kicked the `stranger´ right in the face.

If she was sure about one thing then this. This wasn´t Goku or any counterpart of him, not even an evil one. She had met Goku in the past and his energy signature was completely different from this guy´s. And beside that, the stranger possessed God Ki, she was sure of it. But it still wasn´t Goku´s.

Where the hell had they landed here?

She grabbed both Bulma and the other woman... and shot away from them as fast as she could.

In the last second she realized that her opponent was already standing up again, despite that she had kicked him with full force and had caught him off-guard. And he seemed to be completely unharmed. Whoever he was, he was clearly extremely dangerous.

After a bit over a minute of flight, she landed. Since she possessed no aura, this guy would hardly be able to find them.

She realized that the black haired woman she was holding in her arms was starring at her. In the moment 18 released her from her hold, she jumped backwards, trying to get some distance between them. She had obviously been recognized, Eighteen thought.

"You - you are Android 18," the woman stammered. "But you were dead. Trunks killed you. Bulma, why are you with this Android... and how is she back alive?"

"I - please listen to me," Bulma said, "it might not be quite easy to understand for you. But I believe we are not quite who you think we are. Well, to make it short, we are time-travellers..."

The woman was only starring at her flabbergasted.

"... and I think we landed here by accident," Bulma continued. "Wherever **here** is?"

She was looking at the woman more intensely, she couldn´t help but think she knew her... and then suddenly she realized who it was.

"Moment, I recognize you," Bulma said. "You were a member of Pilaf´s gang. Your name was... Mai, right? But you - you are so young. You should be older than me. But we can not be that far in the past. Not if you recognized 18."

"Bulma, what - what are you saying? You know what happened... don´t you remember? the Dragon Balls... and we have known each other for years," the `younger´ woman said confused.

She shook her head.

"No, I am afraid I am Bulma, but not the same Bulma you know," she responded to the now completely shocked Mai.

xxxxxxx

 _Somewhere else in time and space_

Trunks slowly woke up. Whatever happened during the transport had somehow knocked him out, he realized.

He knew right away that this wasn´t a good sign.

As he opened his eyes, he knew instantly that he wasn´t where he was supposed to be. He was lying in a crated, somewhere inside a town.

But the buildings around him didn´t look anyway like West City... in fact, they didn´t even look like buildings constructed by humans.

Where was he?

He only hoped that the others had made it safely. He had been the last to pass the Portal. So it was possible that whatever had gone wrong, had only affected him. But he couldn´t be sure.

* * *

This was the third chapter and in a sense the beginning of the `main storyline´ of the story. While the Cooler battle was more of a prologue and a set-up for the following situations.

The story had also become sort of a crossover with Dragon Ball Super during the Trunks Arc. There is however, no guaranty that the events will play out exactly like in the series.

Trunks and his team/family are now scattered over three different timelines. As most of you probably realize, Bulma and 18 are in the Future timeline of Super and Marron and `Pan´ in it´s present timeline.

Where Trunks is?... some of can probably guess.


	4. Chapter 4: Questions and Answers

**Chapter 4  
**

It took Marron a few minutes to give them a short explanation of who she and Pan were. About the version of Trunks future they came from, Marron´s own original timeline, the death of her parents in her world and being `adopted´ by Trunks, the other different timelines they had heard about during their lives... and the Portal that their Bulma had invited and the invasion of their world.

To say the native versions of their family and their friends were flabbergasted - or shocked - would be an understatement.

The thing she didn´t get into exact detail... yet, was their family relations... especially Pan´s. For good reasons. They knew of course about his and 18´s past. She had changed of course. Just like their grandfather Vegeta once did.

But they didn´t knew how another version of Trunks would react... one who had by what they had been told so far, gone through the same things because of her, but had possibly never see her change for the better.

Above all that however, they were worried about the others.

"You say you came from from the future - but another timeline?" Bulma finally said, "a different one than Trunks. And you came here in another way than the time machine? A Portal you say?"

"Yes. Well, you are the one who had invented it of course," Marron told her.

"Of course I did. Who else could have created something like this?" Bulma stated, smiling proudly.

She didn´t seem to notice the side-glance Beerus was sending to her from the distance.

xxx

"What do you think about their story father? and you Goku?" Mirai Trunks asked them not too loud.

"Well, we have seen stranger things before, right?" Son Goku replied.

"One thing is sure. This girl there is certainly the same as Krillin´s little brat," Vegeta stated, "and the other girl is a saiyajin, with ki remarkable like yours. Of course that doesn´t mean that we can automatically trust them. We will just have to keep an eye on them for the time being."

"There is also this Black guy you have mentioned, who is destroying your world," Goku stated. "We should better worry about him first."

"I know. You are right of course Goku," Trunks replied.

xxx

In the background, Beerus was in this moment exchanging a look with his assistent and Angel Whiz.

"It seems there are even more of them," the God of Destruction said.

"Yes, but what do you intend to do about it?" Whiz stated.

Beerus frowned.

"I am not sure yet. This is a damned chaos," he hissed. "I know maybe I should simply destroy them all. Messing with time is a serious crime after all," the cat-like deity said with crossed arms, "but I would like to hear a bit more first."

"Oh and this is not because you came to like these people and don´t want to destroy their friends?" Whiz asked him smiling.

"No goddamnit. I am taking my duties serious and don´t be swayed by personal feelings," he exclaimed. "Is that clear? I am waiting with my decision, because I am not sure if they are even the source of the problem or a symptom of it."

"Of course Beerus-sama," Whiz answered smoothly.

xxx

"So you are my... daughter?" Future Trunks asked the girl who had introduced herself as Pan. "Or at least the daughter of my counterpart in your timeline. And you are named after Gohan´s daughter, who your father had once seen in yet another timeline?"

"Yes... well, `Dad´," she responded a bit insecure. "Or maybe I should just call you Trunks, since you are not really him."

"I guess Trunks is okay," he told her.

The counterpart of her father was looking at Pan intensely for a for moments.

Mirai Trunks admitted, it was bizarre, talking to a young girl - barely over ten years old - who claimed to be the daughter of another timeline´s version of him. He wasn´t quite sure if they should trust this two... or if they even were who they claimed to be.

It was a more than bizarre coincidence that this two were showing up here just at the same time as he did. That was for sure. But he could sense her energy, that greatly ressembled his own. Her hair, he saw, had a similar bluish color as his own and his mother´s. Her eyes were also blue. But a few shades lighter. Nearly like... He didn´t came to end this thought.

"By the way," Marron interrupted them, "my Dad - my real Dad - is still alive in this timeline, isn´t he?" she asked. "And my mother as well?"

"Krillin? Yes, he is okay," Bulma stated. "You said he died in your world?" she asked them.

"Yes," Marron replied. "He was killed by a dangerous enemy," she told them. "My mother died only a few months later against another one even far worse."

"So 18 is dead in your world as well?" Bulma stated. "But that doesn´t explain how you came to live with Trunks... and in another timeline of all things.

"What?" Future Trunks called out now. "You - you mean your mother is Android 18? And - and Krillin is actually your father?" he asked.

"In short words, yes," Marron replied. "He was my father. The two came together after the Cell Games. Was it the same in your world? You said you recognized me, so I must exist in this world."

"You do," Bulma told her, "and yes, they are still together."

"I am glad," Marron said.

Yes, Trunks thought. That explained why this girl looked so much like Android 18. He would have nearly mistaken her for the Artificial Human on the first look, if it were not for the fact that she possessed ki.

But he could also tell easily that she was not like the Android 18 he had known from his world. While she seemed somewhat serious and tough, no wonder for someone who had lost both her parents to enemies, she also seemed kind-hearted and caring. Especially when he saw her with her `foster sibling´.

He had only met the 18 of the past timeline a few times and by none of them they had actually been talking much with each other. But he knew she was different. Maybe she had more in common with her own timeline´s version of her mother. He didn´t know. But that didn´t explain how the hell that timelines version of him came to adopt a daughter of Android 18 - any Android 18 - of all people.

It didn´t even really matter. Son Goku was right, he had his own problem to deal with... and this problem was called Black.

"This enemies you have mentioned, is there any chance that they would show up in our timeline as well?" Vegeta asked them.

"I don´t think so. Ne-Me-Sys was an homicidal AI, that had developed out of Doctor Gero´s computer system. But if you had blown up the Computer who had been constructing Cell, like in my own timeline, you should have no problems with him. He had originally come from Trunks timeline."

"So he might exist in my world as well," Mirai Trunks stated. "Unless Black or the Androids have simply already destroyed him at one point."

"Black is the guy threatening your world right now, right?" Marron asked him.

"Yes."

"And he looks exactly like Goku? Does that mean he is an alternate counterpart of him too?"

"No. He might look like him, but his ki is completely different. He is someone else," Trunks answered.

"I see... it is just, the other, even more dangerous, enemy I have been talking about, he was... well," she said with a bit of hesitation, "he was an evil counterpart of you Trunks."

"What?" he called out surprised.

"Yes, by what Mom, Dad and grandma told me, he was an evil maniac, who destroyed worlds and tried to destroy the entire Multiverse," Pan told him.

"Your mother," Trunks asked her, "do I know her?"

"N-no... that means, yes - you do... in some way. But she is probably completely different than the person you have met before." Pan looked down. She truly didn´t want to lie to him. But she admitted, she was afraid of seeing his reaction. This wasn´t her real father, she knew. But he seemed so close.

It was not as if they intended to keep the identity of Pan´s mother from them. But they also didn´t wanted to tell this Trunks right away, before he even had the chance to get to know her. But if he kept asking, they might have no other choice.

"Please... Trunks," Marron said. "We have just arrived here by accident. Our Trunks and Pan´s mother - my stepmother - are **missing**. Just like our Bulma. We have told you our story. We truly don´t want to go more into detail until we know if there is at least **a way** to find them."

"Well... okay," Mirai Trunks answered. He of all people knew how they were feeling. He had lost his own mother to Black... only hours ago from his perspective. He truly felt stupid for questioning them like this in such a situation.

At the same time however a suspicion was starting to form deep in his mind. But then he ignored the thought... it was just too crazy.

"Alright, but there is one last question you have to answer us," Vegeta spoke up. "You have mentioned some opponents from your past. But you have also said that it was some new enemy who invaded your world and had forced you to flee from your timeline. Who is this enemy you were fighting right now?"

"It were, Freezer´s Empire," Marron stated.

"But not the one from our world," Pan told them. "They came from another dimension and attacked ours."

"Yes, and by what we have heard from them, they had attacked several other timelines and universes as well," Marron added.

"What?" the heard Beerus now calling out furious. "You are telling me that in some universe there is an entire Empire out there that is invading other timelines?"

"Ahm, yes," Marron replied. "By what we heard it is."

"Damn it. Not Freezer again," Vegeta remarked angrily.

"What the hell is the God of Destruction in that universe doing?" Beerus called out. "He should prevent something like that from happening in the first place. Just like my counterpart in Trunks world should have stopped this Goku Black character, if he hadn´t been..." Suddenly he stopped in his speech.

"Unless... Whiz," he turned to his assistant, "do you think...?"

"I see," the Angel nodded. "Marron and Pan you said were your names, right?" Whiz asked them. "I know you can not know for sure, but... Do you think it is possible that this other Freezer could have killed the Kaioshin of his world?"

"Well," Marron said. "By what I heard, Freezer´s brother was strong enough to nearly hold himself against Dad and Dad was able to use God Ki. And Freezer himself should be even stronger than him. So it should be possible. But what has this to do with...?"

"We have already explained this a short time ago," Whiz stated, "the Kaioshin of a specific universe and the God of Destruction are connected to each other. If one of them dies, the other perishes as well. Just like it happened in Trunks world, as it´s Kaioshin died fighting Babidi and B`Dabura.

If that world´s Freezer and his troops had been able to cross over to multiple other universe and attack them, without the God of Destruction of their reality doing anything to stop them. Then we have to go by the idea that he had gotten rid of him as well."

"That means where are already two timelines out there without a God of Destruction or Kaioshin," Beerus growled.

xxxxxxx

 _`Unknown´ Dimension_

Somewhere... and somewhen else, another version of Trunks had just found himself in a strange and foreign looking place.

As he walked through the streets, he saw that the people he came across were for the most part clearly alien in origin. He saw a few humanoids. But going by their ki signatures, some of them were also not really human in origin, but similar looking extra terrestrials. Like the Saiyajins for example, he thought.

Still, it were enough so that nobody gave him strange looks for his human appearance.

The first thing he did after arriving, was completely hiding his energy and getting away from the place he had landed and bland into the masses. He didn´t know in what kind of world he had landed and decided not to show himself openly until he had more information.

Sure, it was unlikely that anyone of the people around him was actually strong enough to be a real threat to him. But you could never know.

This mix of different alien races under the population however reminded him of one thing... Freezer´s Empire. His and Cooler´s army were similar diverged.

Could it be that he had landed in their universe?

But where were the others? Had they arrived at their destination? Or had they ended up in yet another world?

He needed to find some answers.

Was truly the homeworld of Freezer´s interdimensional Empire, like he believed. Or was this a completely different world?

xxx

After a few more minutes of walking through the town, he finally got an answer to one of his questions, as he came across a large public TV screen, hanging over the entrance of a building.

A crowed of people of different races was assembled before it. The screen showed the face of some kind of reptilian alien, wearing the armor of Freezer´s army - who, as it looked was holding a public speech.

"People of Planet Freezer Zero," the alien announced. "His Majesty - Emperor Freezer - let it be announced that the return of Lord Cooler´s victorious troops from their latest conquest had sadly been postponed... do to a `technological error´."

Victorious return? Technological error? Yes, of course. Trunks thought sarcastically. The error was that Cooler´s forces had been wiped out. It seemed political propaganda and media control was the same wherever you went.

"The Emperor is thanking all of you loyal citizens and asks you all to return to your work and help to ensure the continued progress and growth of our Empire," the alien continued. "Whoever stays loyal and does his part for our future shall be rewarded. Traitors and dissidents however, who are aiming to harm our Empire, will be treated without mercy. All Hail Emperor Freezer," he ended his speech.

Trunks was sure that, in this moment, he could feel naked fear radiating from several people in the crowd. It was clear to him that this announcement had made several people nervous.

 _"`What do they mean, Lord Cooler´s troops will not return?´ - `Technological Error? What Error can...?´ - `Do you think this will mean another purge on this planet?´ - `What about our families? Will they...?´"_ Trunks heard whispers like that while he was walking slowly trough the crowd.

Yes, this people were afraid, he thought. No matter what species they were, many of them were also victims of Freezer´s tyranny.

He was finally slipping away without anybody paying attention.

xxx

A few minutes later he had left the heavily populated part of the alien city and was now walking alone through a empty backstreet.

He had been right, Trunks said to himself. This **was** the homeworld of the Empire. Now he knew at least that for sure.

The one good thing about this was, that he at least knew for sure that this world possessed the technology for travels between time and dimensions. And that was something that he needed if he ever wanted to see the others again.

Beside that, he was still quite confident that he could easily wreck anyone here if he wanted, with the possible exception of Freezer himself if he was here.

But that was not his objective right now. For the moment, he decided to just hide his energy and keep his eyes open.

What he needed to find was some military or scientific installation or something similar, any place where he could get more information... and hopefully a way to get back out of this world. Then, when he was sure that he could get a way to get back to the others, he thought to himself... then he would prepare to take Freezer´s Empire here down.

For a short moment, Trunks felt as if he was not alone, as if there was another presence that he could feel close to him.

But as he looked around and concentrated his senses, he saw that nobody was there. It were probably only his nerves. He didn´t feel well since he arrived here. The failed time-space transfer and landing here of all things must have gotten to him.

xxxxxxx

In the same world, at another part of the planet that had once been the Earth of this timeline, Emperor Freezer was right now sitting in the throne-room of his personal palace... build on the ruins of the old castle of the former King of Earth Furry, before Freezer´s men had killed him.

It was one of the new centers of his Interstellar - now Interdimensional - Empire.

In this moment he was in a communication with one of his most valuable and most important subordinates. It had truly been a stroke of luck that he had found an individual like this on this planet full of weaklings, Freezer admitted.

Right now however his moot was truly not the best. No wonder, given the failure of his invasion force and what happened to his brother... and the person on the other end of the communication-line was taking the brunt of his rage, not matter if he deserved it or not.

Well, Cooler´s death actually had one good side. With it, he had also lost a potential rival. But also one of his strongest and most skilled commanders.

"I don´t care if they perfectly followed their programming. The invasion has failed and we lost the entire strike-force... and your Androids had managed to do nothing - absolutely nothing - to change that," Freezer raged.

"My Lord," Doctor Gero replied. "By all respect, you knew from the beginning that the models you have send with Cooler´s troops were only of average strength and only programmed at foot-soldiers. If you had send some of my top models with them, then I guaranty you, it would have been completely..."

"Yes yes yes," Freezer said impatiently, interrupting him, "I know. It was unfair of me to blame you for the decisions of others. The stress, surely you understand."

"Of course your Majesty."

"But tell me Gero, are the new `Ultimate´ prototypes that you have promised me ready?" Freezer asked.

"Very soon my Lord. I have just begun to run the last tests. I can not be more than a few more days until the first of them are battle ready."

"Good, very good." Freezer grinned. "With the loss of Cooler and his army, a gap had opened in our forces and the Empire has been weakened. If your new Androids can make up for the loss, I promise you that you will be rewarded royally. I will grant you everything your heart desires, whatever it is."

"Thank you your Majesty," Doctor Gero replied.

"But if you disappoint me," the Emperor said, "an equally terrifying punishment awaits you. Is that clear?"

"Of course Master."

"Good. Then good luck Doctor." Freezer ended the communication.

"Fool," Gero whispered after the line had been cut.

Yes, his `Ultimate Project´ was indeed only a small step away from being completed... the true Ultimate Project, not the decoys he had shown Freezer.

Doctor Gero, in his immortal `Number 20´ body, turned around to his computer-system, ignoring the two Androids who were standing guard at the doors.

"Ne-Me-Sys," he adressed his personal AI system, "just like `our Lord´ asked, how is the status of our secret project?"

"By physical standards practicaly complete Doctor Gero. The developments of the body is completed and the mental one to 95%. All what is left is the final battle-conditioning."

"Very good. How is the power analyses?" he wanted to know.

"Powerlevel is exeeding the latest highest expectations by 11%," the AI answered. "By my analysis project Cell-X now surpasses Emperor Freezer´s maximum power in his strongest form by 21 percent."

"Yes. Perfect" Doctor Gero now had a diabolic smile on his face. "`Emperor´ Freezer will not know what hit him."

xxxxxxx

Meanwhile in yet another timeline, Bulma and 18 had begun to talk with the woman named Mai.

"Trunks had defeated the Androids about ten years ago," she stated.

"That would mean we are about 6 years earlier than we had been in our time," Bulma commented.

"Yes, I see now, you look somewhat older as your other self did," Mai said. "At a closer look, you look actually quite old now."

"I don´t need to hear that from a woman who should be years **older** than me," Bulma suddenly roared. "You are luck that we don´t have the Dragon Balls anymore or I would pull the same stunt like your gang and remind you how sexy I was back then," she exclaimed.

This only caused 18 to laugh.

"Okay, afterwards we had peace for several years, until first this Wizard Babidi appeared - but Trunks defeated him... and then Black only a short time later," Mai continued. "Then he begann his attacks. The destruction he caused under the people surpassed even that of the Androids," she said with a clance at 18.

"The Wizard Babidi?" 18 commented. "Yes, 17 and I had killed him a long time ago... twice actually, once in our timeline and then again in another one."

"You say that this Goku double had first appeared about a year ago?" Bulma stated. "And he attacked the planet and started to kill everyone? Well, everyone who was still alive after the Androids." She gave 18 a short side-look as well, as she said this. "And you are calling him Goku Black or simply `Black´ for short?"

Mai nodded.

"Yes. Trunks was able to stall him somewhat... a bit at least," she explained. "But countless people still died by his hands. He and Bulma - well **our** Bulma, your other self - had been preparing the time-machine, to return to the past... as they had explained it."

Well, it seems our histories are very similar, at least until Trunks had returned from the past the first time, but not the same," Bulma stated. "We have known for some time that there are many different timelines, far more than just the ones createdby our time- machine. Babidi for example had died in our world years earlier and it was not my son who had killed him, but 17 and 18. This Goku Black had never shown up. Instead there had... other villians," she said.

"The last ones had been a version of Freezer´s Empire from another timeline, one far more powerful that the one Goku and the others had defeated all those years ago. They are the reason we had to leave our world. Our Earth is gone Mai, destroyed."

"It seems we are not the only ones who have problems, right?" she replied. "But... you said you and Trunks have a daughter? T-that means you and him are actually together - you of all people." Mai could not keep the growl completely out of her voice.

18 had noticed it as well. The dark haired woman sounded not just shocked or even horrified, like most other people woud have been. She actually sounded...

"You are jealous," 18 realized. "You like him as well."

"What?" Mai was suddenly blushing deeply. "No, me and Trunks are just friends."

"Of course, yes. I guess that is also the reason that you are red like a tomatoe," 18 replied sarcastically. "Just admit it, you might not actually be together, but that is certainly not because you don´t want to."

Mai now turned even redder.

"Well, better me than a mindless killer-cyborg," she suddenly shouted angrily.

Moments later she turned white like a sheet. She just realized what she just said and to **whom**.

"I - I..."

"Don´t worry Mai," Bulma told her. "I told you, 18 has truly changed. She is not longer the killer she had once been."

"No. You don´t have to be afraid of me," 18 said, "... and you are right. You have every right to talk about me like that. I had been a monster. I know that. I had only begun to change after I had a taste of what I had done to other... and even then it still took me a while. I am really kind of a stubborn bitch you know," she commented.

"Mai, your two friends, the other members of your gang?" Eighteen asked.

"You have killed them. You and your wretched brother had murdered them. I had barely got away with my life. We had only been children after our wish and you..." she shouted. Tears were now flowing down her face.

"I am sorry," 18 said. "I don´t even know for sure if I had done the same thing. But... I am still sorry."

"Too many victims to remember, right?" Mai asked bitterly.

"Yes, too many," Eighteen replied weakly.

* * *

 **Author´s notes:** One noticable differnce between the tow Mirai timelines is, in the one from Dragon Ball Alternates, the Supreme Kai/Kaioshin never died and with him the God of Destruction didn´t either. While in Super, both perished. That in turn caused Black Goku to appear, since he was looking for a timeline where Beerus didn´t exist anymore.


	5. Chapter 5: Too many time-travellers

**Chapter 5  
**

Marron and Pan were finally showing a reaction to the side effects of their broken dimensional transfer. With other words, they had passed shortly after their talk with the others and were now sleeping deeply.

Bulma theorized that, whatever had gone wrong during their transport, had probably put too much stress on their bodies and their minds - in addition to the stress they were already under, due to their situation of course.

xxx

That gave the Z-fighters of this dimension - including the other version of Mirai Trunks - time to think and recapitulate about what they had just heard of this two.

By now Piccolo, who had sense the new energies, had joined them as well... and Dende was present through a telepathic link.

"We can still not be completely sure that we can trust them," Vegeta stated. "All we have is their word for what had happened in their world."

"I see it the same way," Piccolo agreed. "We should try to help them, but keep an eye on them for the next time. By the way, don´t you find it strange that they had arrived her just at the same time as Trunks?"

"Well, that might actually be the reason they had arrived here," Mirai Trunks pointed out. "We still know very little about how time travel works fully. If their had been a malfunction in their technology, maybe my transfer has somehow interacted with theirs and pulled them into this time along with me."

"That could be a possibility," Bulma mused, "but we need to know more, before I could say that is a possibility."

"But this **is** an older version of Marron, Vegeta you said that yourself," Goku pointed out. "And the other girl is clearly Trunks daughter, going by her aura."

"But that is all we know for sure," Bulma replied. "Who knows how things are in the timeline they came from? For all we know, their parents could have died years ago in their word and they had been raised by some enemy, who is now using them to infiltrate us."

"Ahm, you know Bulma, that sounds kind of paranoid," Goku commented.

"It is," Piccolo agreed, "but it is kind of the worst case scenario that is possible here. I think too that we should help them. But we can not simply trust them blindly, just because they `ressemble´ people we know."

"Okay," Vegeta interrupted them. "For now, I think we should return to the mater of Trunks here and what happened in **his** future."

"I agree," Goku said. "Tell us more about this `Black´ guy Trunks. You said that he looks exacly like me?"

"Yes," Trunks replied.

"But also that he isn´t me? Also not another version from another timeline?"

"No, that´s for sure. His ki is different from yours," Trunks stated.

"I think you all are overseeing one detail," Beerus interrupted them. "We have already told you that influencing time is a grave offense... and here you are standing, planning to do it again? Right in front of me?" he asked them.

They all turned around to the God of Destruction, visible distraught by his declaration.

"Well, you see..." Bulma stammered.

"It is just that we want to stop this Goku Black guy. And we want to help Trunks and the others," Goku said. "Is that so wrong?"

"Well, Goku has a point," Whiz stated. "If what we suspect about Goku Black is correct... and if there is truly an Empire out there that is invading other timelines... then you coud see it in that way, that they are actually trying to `prevent´ further intrusions from happening."

"Indeed," Beerus replied with a knowing grin. "I could decide to ignore your infractions. But of course only when you plan to find and stop this Goku Black character and especially this Empire and keep them from invading even more worlds."

"With other words, you actually agree with us that they need to be stopped and are willing to look the other way about out methods as long as we do it," Piccolo stated.

"With one word... Yes," Whiz chuckled.

"Moment," Bulma asked them, "you said if `your suspicions about Black are correct´. What do you suspect about him?"

The God and his Angel shared another short look with each other.

"We think he might also be a time traveller," Whiz stated.

"W-what gives you that idea?" Bulma asked them.

"Don´t you think it a bit suspicious that he just showed up in Trunks world a short time after both the Kaioshin and Lord Beerus counterpart had perished and then instantly started to wipe out entire worlds?" the Angel responded. "Nearly as if he had been waiting for such a chance."

"Ah well," Bulma said.

"Great, another one," Goku commented. "First Trunks, then this two girls, I am slowly starting to loose track."

"There is also what Trunks said about this `Goku Black´ talking about how he wants to destroy all the mortals for the sake of `justice´," Whiz mentioned. "That would suggest that he isn´t a mortal himself, right?"

"And? What do you mean? How does this make him a time traveller?" Goku wanted to know.

"There are not many ways to travel through time or dimensions," Beerus told him. "In fact, aside from the machines you have build..."

"I told you, that wasn´t me, but the future me," Bulma interrupted him.

"Doesn´t matter. Now shut up, I explain it to you. We only know of one other method actually," Beerus said. "And there is only one group of beings who possess it."

xxxxxxx

A few minutes later, a small group of children - consisting of the younger Trunks and the three juvenated members of the Pilaf gang - were standing totether in front of the room where their two new guests were sleeping.

It was in first line Trunks, who had been thrown into a loop because of all this. First a guy who turned out to be an older version of himself appeared - an very impressive older version of himself, that his girlfriend Mai had obviously a crush on - and then even two more time-travellers appeared. And one of them was the daughter of yet anothr older version of him.

He truly didn´t knew what to think about this.

They had been throwing a few short glances inside the room where the two girls were sleeping.

"You know, this is all way to complicated," Shu said. "This girl is the daughter of an older Young Master, but not the same older Young Master who is already here..."

"It isn´t that complicated at all," Pilaf replied. "It´s just like this teacher explained it a few hours ago. A change in the past caused different circumstances and creates new timelines. This two girls just come from another future as the first older Trunks."

"Still quite complicated," young Trunks commented.

"I am asking myself if the other one is just like the Trunks from the future we have just met," Mai said in a dreamy voice.

"You realized that both of them a him, right?" Pilas stated, pointing at the Trunks right next to them, "only a few years older."

Mai gave him a scowl in return.

"But this years seem to have made a large difference, haven´t they?" she commented.

"The same could be said about you," Pilaf retorted. "Right now you are only a little girl yourself after all. But when this version of Trunks here is all grown up, you will actually have the right age as well (again, he thought)... for something like this."

"You - shut up," Mai now called out, embarassed.

While they were having this conversation, the others were continuing their discussion what to to about the threat named Goku Black and also about this new version of Freezer´s Empire.

xxxxxxx

 _Mirai timeline_

Bulma and Eighteen were still sitting together with this timeline´s version of Mai, who was in opposite to her counterpart already a young woman (again).

They were currently listening to this Mai telling them in more detail, the story of the enemy called Goku Black, who had been first attacking their world about a year ago... and who Trunks had barely been able to stall... until today.

Bulma was dead tired. Just like the children, something about the failed time-transfer seemed to have really gotten to her.

18 was less effected, with her eternal energy-source, that kept her from getting exhausted.

"Do you know how long your Trunks will stay in the past?" 18 asked her.

Mai scowled at her for a few moments.

"I am not sure," she finally admitted.

"And I am dead in this world," Bulma stated. She forced away the sick feeling the death of her other self caused her. "Mai, tell me this, are the labs in Capsule Corp still intact?" she wanted to know.

"I - I am not sure actually," she replied. "A-after you... I mean - I think Black had messed up the place. But I don´t know if he has destroyed it. I had other things to worry about."

"You want to see if any of her equipment is still intact?" 18 questioned.

"Yes," Bulma replied. "I want to see if I can maybe find anything there that could help us to find out where Trunks and the children are. And if not that, then at least to contact the Trunks of this world, so that he can help us."

18 nodded.

"You know, that is a really great leap of faith... even if you find something, the chance that we can really do something with it is..."

"I know," Bulma interrupted her, "But it is all we can do right now. If I find nothing useful, we have just to wait till the Tunks of this timeline will return. If we have the time-machine here, I am pretty sure, I can use it to contact the past we had wanted to reach."

"Well, that is truly an interesting story." They heard a voice coming from behind them.

Mai was turning pale as she heard it.

As they turned around, they saw the double of Goku - Black - levitating in the air, about a dozen meters above them.

"He had found us," Mai said, terrified.

"He had been hiding his energy," 18 realized.

"Indeed, I have," Goku Black commented smugly. "Just like you have mortal - in the hope to escape me." He grinned. "Only that it didn´t help you. You might have, but your two friends were not able to do that," he stated with a look at Mai.

"Tracing her energy had been quite easy," he said. "Really, you mortals are quite simple. One reason more to destroy you all."

At the outside, he was in fact looking exactly like Son Goku, 18 thought - now that she was getting a closer look at him. Except for the clothes... and the strange earring he was wearing at the side of his head.

It was looking exactly like one of the ones the Kaioshin were wearing, she realized.

"You know, I had actually wanted to just kill your little group here right away and then continue with the rest of this planet, now that their so called `protector´ had fled for his life," Black declared. "But then I came to listen in this **very interesting** conversation."

"Damn it," 18 hissed. Not only had this guy found them, now he even knew about their plans.

"So you are not from this time as well? Very interesting," Goku Black stated. "That also explains how this `Trunks´ had suddenly vanished without a trace. **Now** , why don´t you tell me more about this time-machine you have been talking about?"

"We will not tell you nothing," Mai called out.

"Too bad... well, maybe the others will tell me, after I am done with you." He charged a ki blast in his hand and pointed it down at her.

But 18 lifted up in the air and moved right between them, blocking his aim at Mai.

"Don´t even try it," she said.

"So you think you can stand in my way, creature?" Black stated.

He fired his blast at her, which Eighteen however blocked easily.

"Not bad," her opponent commented. "It seems you are not the average mortal either. But that doesn´t matter. You will die along with the rest of the scum."

"We will see about that," 18 called out as she charged at him. She tried to land a few punches, but Black dodged her strikes every single time.

"So you are one of these so called Androids as I heard?" he remarked. "I should thank you - I have heard about the work your kind had already done on this pathetic planet before I arrived. You had already wiped out a great part of the population and spared me the time to do it myself." A smirk appeared on his face.

"I would have nearly considered sparing you for that... but in the end, you are also the creation of a mortal. And as such you need to be eliminated as well - for a better world."

"Shut up you bastard," Eighteen shouted at him. "Do you think I am proud of what we have done?" She managed to land a hard punch at his face - that pushed him a few meters backwards, but otherwise caused no visible damage.

"Do you know how much I have hated myself for years?" she called out.

Bulma and Mai - having taken cover behind the walls of a collapsed house - were following the fight from the ground.

Black only smiled at her.

"You are quite strong I see. But that was the fool who was trying to protect this planet as well. It didn´t help him much. But if you want to fight, here I am," he challenged her. "I am sure I can make good use of a little work-out with you, Android. You should feel honored. You are fulfilling the purpose of a higher being."

18 attacked again and their fists clashed, unleashing a shockwave over the entire place.

They traded another few blows, with Black mostly blocking her attacks and sending a few strikes back. Little did Eighteen knew that she was in fact doing exactly what he wanted.

"You are talking a lot about mortals and about destroying them," she commented during their struggle. "Tell me, if you are not a mortal - what are you then?"

"The answer is quite simply," Goku Black answered. "I am a god."

xxxxxxx

A few realities away, Trunks - the same one who had tried to travel to the past, along with 18, Bulma, Pan and Marron... and instead landed in the heart of the enemy´s Empire - was in the same position as the two girls in the past timeline and was taking a sleep.

Of course only after he had checked more than once that nobody had been following him. He didn´t knew that the presence he thought he had sensed could not be found.

After walking for a few hours, he had by now left the city limits behind and had sat down at an empty spot, at the side of a hill and surrounded by a group of trees. If it were not for the knowledge, that this world was inhabited by Freezer´s Empire, he could have nearly believed, he was back at a peaceful place on Earth.

Trunks dreams however, were all but peaceful.

In his mind he found himself standing somewhere between the ruins of a city. One of the many he had seen in his life.

It was nearly as if he was back in the time of the Android´s reign of terror.

But the figure he saw now standing in front of him was no Android. No, it was someone even worse.

He was starring at the figure clad in a black cloak, with his face hidden by a white mask. It couldn´t be.

"You are dead," Trunks said. "I saw you die."

"Yes indeed, you have. You and your friends have defeated me and stopped the invasion of my Master into our realities... and then you watched our old friend Tapion kill me." The man was removing his mask... and underneath appeared Trunks own face. His blue hair was a bit longer as he himself was wearing it and falling over his doubles shoulders... but otherwise it was the same.

"In a sense I should actually thank you all. Because of you my soul is now residing with my beloved Master - outside of this wretched cluster of realities," his alternate self, known as The Priest stated. "But did you truly think it would be so easy to get rid of me?"

Before him was standing the worst enemy he had ever faced, a twisted and evil version of himself - able to use Divine Ki and incredible powerful - with the aim to throw all realities into chaos and darkness in the name of a monstrous allmighty god from outside the known universes. A being who died over eleven years ago.

"How? No, you are gone. You admitted it yourself. I am dreaming, aren´t I? Just like I have often seen 17 and 18 in my nightmares." Like he had also seen The Priest in his nightmares before sometimes. But never like this, never actually talking to him.

"You mean before you decided to have sex with one of them and make babies?" his double asked him sarcastically. "I ask myself what Gohan would have said about this - not the one from the past, but your Gohan. But on the other side our mother had been with Vegeta, who were even worse once, so he would have probably accepted it, right?"

Trunks tried to keep himslf calm at the words of his double. He had often asked himself the same question. The Gohan from the past had approved of his relationship with 18, after she had changed her ways. But he had also never seen the terror the Androids had caused in his time... but Gohan had known Vegeta, he remembered.

"Yes Trunks, you are dreaming," The Priest told him smoothly. "And yes, you are right, the true me is long dead and my soul removed from this universes. But a small part of me had stayed. You remember, we had fused a short time before my end. The truth is, a small part of me stayed behind inside you... hiding, waiting, for the right moment - You can call it a contigency-plan if you want."

His mirror-image was smiling at him.

xxxxxxx

In the same reality, several miles away from Tunks resting place, the local version of Doctor Gero was in this moment discussing the planned activation of his latest and probably greatest creation with his AI system Ne-me-sys.

Yes, Cell´s body was finished, for all purposes. But his programming was still unfinished.

"Damn Freezer," Gero hissed. "If it weren´t for him constantly looking over my back, "I could have easily gathered the entire data necessary for Cell´s programming years ago."

"He doesn´t trust you," Ne-me-sys stated. "He fears that one day, you might try to create an Android strong enough to dispose of him. This is in fact exactly what you are doing."

"I know that," Gero responded. "It has taken me years to create this secret side-wing of my lab and to collect the cellular material from all this warriors without him getting suspicious. I will also be able to get to the rest of the data needed to finish his programming. It will only take some more time."

"Doctor Gero," Ne-me-sys told him, "I have another suggestion. I might know a way, how we could finish Cell-X´s programming faster."

* * *

 **Author notes:** In the Anime, Goku Black uses the word ningen, to describe the regular people (non gods). This was translated as `humans´, even for aliens from other planets. But `mortals´ would be more correct in the sense he was using it.

I want to thank the guest reviewer who had left a number of reviews for my stories during the last weeks.

One question you had regarding the Priest. No, as his history in Alternates had described it, he was not `naturally´ evil or through the natur of his reality. It were mostly circumstances and events in his childhood and their consequences that turned him into what he was.


	6. Chapter 6: Lost and found

**Chapter 6**

Trunks suddenly awoke.

He remembered the dream. Was it true? Some left-over of The Priest remaining in his mind? Or had this just been his fears taking shape?

What if it was true? He might over short or long become a threat to his mother, 18 and the children.

But right now he had other problems to deal with.

For the moment he pushed such fears out of his mind. What he needed now was a way to leave this universe and return to his own.

Ironically, the fact that he had landed in the word of Freezer´s Empire, one of the few other dimensional-travellers he knew, was actually a good thing in this regard. At least here he knew that there was a way back for him on this planet.

All he needed to do was to find the place where their travelling-device was located, bring it under his control and find a way to open a portal that brought him home.

Yes, as if it would be so easy, he thought. First of all, he had not the slightest idea how their device worked. That meant he would have to force one of **their** technicians to activate the machine for him. And he knew there was no way he could trust one of these people.

That meant he would have to be **very** persuasive... and in the best case he should try to make sure that the device got destroyed after he left... planting a bomb, overloading the generator or something...

And he needed to be quick. Cooler had been incredible powerful. Not on his own level, but not so far away.

And Trunks knew that Freezer had to be stronger than his brother.

It wasn´t as if he was afraid of this opponent. But **this** Freezer might very well be strong enough to keep him from leaving this world... and there was no guaranty that he was even the only strong enemy in this dimension.

xxxxxxx

Meanwhile on another part of this version of Earth, Doctor Gero was following the suggestion of the AI of his computer-system... and connected Ne-Me-Sys CPU directly with Cell´s brain and his still developing consciousness.

The AI and the newly finished Bio-Android were slowly merging into one, becoming one being.

It was the best solution, Gero decided, when he thought about it.

He knew Ne-Me-Sys was loyal to him - In opposite to some of his past creations. And so would be Cell, it the merging worked like it should be.

Ne-Me-Sys also already possessed a fully developed mind and the entire assembled knowledge of martial arts and fighting skills that Gero had collected over the years for his Androids.

So he would get a fully functional fighter much - much faster as when he programmed Cell from stretch.

And time was of the essence, he reminded himself. With every day he wasted, the risk grew of `Lord´ Freezer finding out what he was truly doing. That instead of still creating Androids to enforce his rule, he was creating someone to replace him.

Gero was standing in front of the man-sized tube that contained Cell-X body.

He watched as the creature slowly opened it´s eyes.

"I - I am Ne-Me-Sys," be being said, "... no - no, I am Cell," he corrected himself.

"Yes you are," Gero whispered satisfied.

xxxxxxx

18 was still fighting the being known as Goku Black.

At the fist look, she seemed to be doing well. But only at the beginning.

The truth was, her opponent so far had not even been truly trying. She was actually giving him exactly what he wanted.

After he was caught by an punch from 18 into his face and his by another barrage of ki blasts right afterwards, a smile was forming on Black´s face.

"Not bad," he commented.

In the next moment however he charged forward and landed a hard punch in 18´s gut - far harder than any he had send to her before.

Her two compatriots on the ground were watching in fear what was happening.

"Bulma, I have warned you about him. He has been toying with her," Mai told her.

"But why?" Bulma asked her.

"That is the good question," Mai responded.

Yes, why? For some reason he also seemed to have been doing this with Trunks as well in the past, by what she had heard of their fights.

They watched as Black send 18 crashing down to the ground with another blow. She was struggling to get up again, but was obviously hurt from the last strike.

"You were good - for the creation of a mere `ningen´." Goku Black grinned. "Quite ironic. You have actually been helping me. A little bit at least. " He charged an energy blast in his hands and aimed it down at the Android.

"But now it is time to get rid of you," he stated and move to fired,

Just before he could however, he was suddenly caught by an Attack from behind.

The kick from the attacker - who he for some reason didn´t sense coming - was powerful enough to send Black flying away and hit one of the ruined multi-story buildings a few hundred meters away with enough force to break clear through the walls and come out on the other side, only to land somewhere far away...

... crashing and breaking into the ground.

As Mai, Bulma and 18 looked at their rescuer, they were instantly filled with surprise... and in two cases shock and fear.

"A-Android 17," Bulma stammered. While Mai next to her was getting pale.

"Seventeen?" 18 asked.

"We have been looking for you," the other Android said, looking at her sternly. "As you had not appeared over the portal like planned, our Bulma had been working like mad to locate you. Not that I particular care what happens to you," 17 told her. "But I care about Marron and also Pan, Trunks and Bulma are people I would hate to see dead."

"You - you are 17 from the past," Bulma stated, calming down visibly.

"Of course I am," he replied. "After Bulma - well, you - had been able to identify at least one of the worlds your group had been send to, I had volunteered to find you all and bring you back. But it seems Marron is not with you," he stated.

"One of the worlds?" Future Bulma questioned, "does that mean...?"

"Yes, they had not arrived in our time either," 17 answered. "As it looks, you have all ended up in different realities."

He raised his arm and they could see a small device on an armband around his wrist.

"With this they will be able to locate us and open another portal when I send a signal to them," he explained.

In this moment they heard a loud noise, an exlosion and then an angry shout from the direction he had just send Black flying.

"I seems like time for explanations are over," 17 commented.

He pushed a button on the device he was wearing.

"Why is this Goku-clone or whoever he is even trying to kill you?" he asked.

"No time for explanations 17, remember?" 18 responded. "Just bring us away from here."

The portal opened and they all run through, just as the enraged Black reappeared behind them.

But split seconds before he had reached his targets, they were gone.

How did that happen? he asked himself. He had not been able to sense this other fighter at all and he could sense both godly and mortal ki.

Another Android? and this portal. Yet another time traveller, he realized.

These mortals just didn´t stop playing with things they had no right to, he thought.

It was truly about time that someone finally did the right thin and destroyed them all. Too bad nobody beside him was willing to make that choice.

Nobody beside him and...

"Are these mortals troubling you?" a smooth voice asked him.

Another being had just teleported in and appeared next to him. The newcomer was a young man with light green and pointed ears. By his looks, he was clearly a Kaio.

"Not much," Black replied, "but they are truly good in escaping."

"Do you think they have time-travelled as well? Or was that just a transport-technique?"

"I am not sure. I admit I have never seen something like this before."

"This is slowly getting out of hand," the mysterious Kaio stated. "We already have enough disturbanced for the Zero-Mortal-Plan. You shouldn´t have wasted so much time toying with that Trunks and eliminated him right away."

"He had helped me to get stronger," Black reminded him, "just like this Android did."

"And now we have both of them still on the run, because you didn´t finish them off when you had the chance," the Kaio responded. "You could have let me help you directly from the start."

"They are no threat, just an annoyance. And about Trunks. I have a good idea where he went to. It is time that I deal with him once and for all."

xxxxxxx

Mirai Bulma, Mirai 18, Mai and 17 had just returned to the world he came from... the same past they had originally wanted to reach.

"Are you okay? You have found them?" the Bulma of this world, who was standing at the controls. asked.

"Only your other self and 18," he answered. "It seems Marron, Pan and Trunks had indeed landed in other timelines."

"Damn, I feared as much," she said. "Who is that?" she asked as her look fell on Mai.

"I don´t know," 17 replied. "We had no time to get introduced. As I arrived, they had been attacked by some madman who looked like Goku."

"What?" Past Bulma asked surprised.

"Believe me, I reacted pretty much in the same way as I saw him the first time," Mirai Bulma stated.

"Mai here has already told us a few things about him. I guess we will have to repeat her story."

"Mai? Hey moment, I recognize you, you are one of Pilaf´s followers," Past Bulma exclaimed. "But why are you looking so young?" she shouted even louder.

Mai sighed. It seemed as if she had to tell everything all over again.

"Now that we have two Bulma´s here, you will hopefuly locate the others faster," 17 commented.

"You can count on that," Past Bulma stated. "Right?" she asked her double, who only nodded.

xxxxxxx

Meanwhile in the past where Marron and Pan had been send to, the other Future Trunks was training with Son Gogu and Vegeta.

He already knew perfectly well that he was completely outmatched by both of them... and they had not even been using their strongest form against him, that they had mentioned. The one the called SSJ Blue.

But on the other side this was good, if they would be dealing with Black. He knew he had no chance. But maybe his father and Son Goku did.

In this moment he had to think about his mother and what happened to her and crinched inside... in the same moment however, his face was met with Vegeta´s fist.

"You should watch out better boy. We are here in a sparring-match," Vegeta reminded him impatiently.

"Sorry father, I had to think about mother," Trunks replied.

This caused the expression of the older saiyan to change for a moment.

"You need to concentrate. Or you will never be able to avenge her," he finally replied.

"Hey Vegeta, who do you think we should deal with first, this Black guy or this Empire?" Goku asked him, seeing that he and Trunks had interrupted the match.

"As powerful as he is, this Black is only one person. So he should be quicker to deal with," Vegeta stated. "When we have all time to deal with this new Freezer."

"But we have dealt with Freezer before, more than once," Goku mentioned. "This new guy is someone we knew nothing about though, except that for some reason he looks like me... and Whiz and Lord Beerus think he is some kind of god."

Vegeta grunted.

"We are training to take both of them. We can later decide who comes first. If one or the other should show up in our timeline, then we will take them on anyway."

xxxxxxx

At the same time, Marron and Pan were standing in this moment in front of a house, at the place they were told Marron´s family was living in thsi world.

They had already rung the door... and a few seconds later it was being opened.

Marron could only stare at the man in front of her.

Pan beside her was only curious.

Krillin on the other side was starring in surprise at the young woman who looked very much like his wife with different hairstyle. And at the younger blonde girl next to her.

"Dad?" she said to the confused Krillin.

"What?"

"H-have you not been told that more time-travellers have arrived?" she asked.

"Bulma mentioned something like that when she called, but... " Krillin replied. "Marron?"

Behind him, she saw Eighteen standing inside the living room, with her younger self in her arms.

Marron couldn´t help but smile. This was her real mother, she thought. Or at least as close as it was possible. She had her own Marron and was still married to her father.

Not that the other 18 wasn´t trying. But it was just not the same.

"I am so happy to see you again," she called out and draw the short man into a tight hug.

The others were watching - 18 obviously somewhat amused, the younger Marron confused and Pan slowly growing impatient from practically being ignored.

"I know this had to be somewhat confusing," Marron said. "Hello me - well, I am you from the future."

"Earth to Marron, I am also here, you remember?" Pan finally proclaimed.

"Yes Marron, don´t you want to introduce us to your friend?" 18 asked.

"Of course. This is Pan, she is... ah well..." she wasn´t quite sure how to explain it. "She is my sister."

"What?" Krillin exclaimed.

"Before you say something..." Marron continued.

"I am her half-sister actualy. And yes, I was named after Gohan´s daughter. He was very close to my father... and."

"As you know, we come from a different timeline - or more like **two** different timeline to be exact," Marron said. "The point is, we are both daughters of Android 18, but... it are different Eighteen´s," she explained to her confused family.

* * *

Guest: I in fact blame Goku Black´s strange SSj forms (a.k.a SSj Rose) mostly on the fact that he is a saiyan body, mixed with the ki of an evil Kaioshin. It should be very hard to say how both would react to each other.

For Goku Black´s/Zamasu´s personality and power, I draw from both, Anime and Manga and improvise. I have however not completely worked out every detail yet.

 **One detail about the different timelines:** In the original Super story, it is stated that the number of known timelines is limited and equal to the number of the time-rings in the possession of the Kaioshin, that are currently six. In Alternates it was however made clear that there are hundreds of Dragon Ball timelines and variations of the 12 Universes.

So for this story I will for this reason change this into the idea that the six timelines symbolized by the time-rings, are only the ones created through time-travel from the Super timeline and back.

That allows the existence of multiple other timelines that are unconnected to this one. This will be more explicitely stated in the following chapters.

There will also be something to reconnect Omni-king Zeno from Super and the `Nameless God´ from Dragon Ball Alternates.


	7. Chapter 7: Awakening

**Chapter 7  
**

Trunks had arrived at the place where he knew the control-station of the dimensional portals of the Empire to be located.

He suppressed his ki to an an absolute minimum as he approached the gates - barely more than a normal human. For everyone - including the guards - he looked like just a normal `humanoid´ citizen.

Now it was all a question of timing... and luck.

He had decided to just use the front door. It was not that anyone here would be a challenge to him. The problems would only appear when Freezer himself and whatever else strong being were here would notice his presense.

And this would happen, as soon as he unleashed his power.

"Stop - who are you?" one of the two soldiers standing guard asked him.

He responded by simply blasting the bulking large alien´s head clean off.

His partner of course instantly raised his guard up, but Trunks dealt with him just as quickly with another shot.

But now, after raising his powerlevel so far, at least the half army on the planet probably knew where he was. He needed to be fast.

He headed for the room in that he sensed the largest numbers of energies. This had to be the control center.

On his way, he vaporized another couple of soldiers.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, a dark part of his consciousness - one that maybe might not entirly belong to him - was feeling glee at his cold efficiency.

"Okay," Trunks announced as he had entered what he was now sure was the control-room, after blasting the door open - facing a shocked group of technicians -, "listen up, all of you. I know this is the installation the Empire uses to reach other universes. I want to contact a certain other timeline...

... and you will help me with it," he announced, making it clear that they had no choice.

xxxxxxx

At the same time, far away in Doctor Gero´s main lab, the figure of Cell, inside the tube slowly came to life.

Just like he and Ne-Me-Sys had planned, the AI´s copied consciousness had merged with his new Ultimate Creation and completed his programming.

As Cell´s body made it´s first movements andas he released his energy for the first time, the glass around him bursted apart.

He was finally alive... and free. His appearance was somewhat similar to the Cell of many other worlds. But there were noticably differences.

His body was light green, covered nearly completely in natural armor - nearly like an insect´s - like most other universe´s versions of him, he possessed a tail that ended in a sharp stinger, but it was shorter than with most. On his back he had short insectoid wings, that reached down to his waist. He possessed a pale white, humanoid face with light purple eyes.

All in all he ressembled more other Cell´s so called `Perfect Form´ than the initial one. This was no wonder, since Doctor Gero had created human based Androids like 17 and 18 since a long time ago in this universe. He he had long integrated their cellular material into Cell´s systems.

Then the Bio Android started to power up. Like the Cell of many other timelines however, it was not just his own... he was in fact absorbing energy from countless others.

This was however - in opposite to other versions of him - not by absorbing it directly from other people through his stinger. Doctor Gero had found a much more efficient way.

It had been for a few months now, that Gero had been in secret systematically releasing a new form of specially designed nannites into the biosphere of the planet. Of course at the beginning only in limited and far away from populated places, so that nobody would notice, until they had replicated themselves into large enough numbers to fulfill their purpose.

Of course his small creations were well disguised - shielded and radiated no power people of any known sensors could detect - and were very hard to notice anyway. Not if not someone were intentionally looking for nobody would do, since he himself and Ne-Me-Sys had been the only ones even knowing about their existence.

But it couldn´t hurt to be carefuly - very careful. This was something that decades under Freezer had thought him.

Gero had seen many others who had forgotten that lesson and were now gone.

This single purpose of the nannites was simple. To drain energy from all living beings on the planet and send it to Cell.

... And exactly this purpose they were fulfilling right now. They were taking power, not only from normal imperial citizens - that Lord Freezer had settled here - but also from the army and many elite soldiers... even some from Freezer himself.

Cell´s power was rising more and more.

By the older powerlevel scale the Empire had been using, it had already passed 40 Billions... 50... then 60... far stronger than for example this creature Freezer had called Majin Buu - that they had found and destroyed a long time ago and then send him the leftovers of his egg for research - had ever been.

Then it passed 100, 150 and 200 billion... and Gero knew this was still only a fraction of his true power.

He started to laugh in triumph.

"Doctor Gero," Cell/Ne-Me-Sys greeted him, "the data-transfer was an success. This body is fully functional - **I** am fully functional. The experiment was a full success."

"It seems so," Gero replied triumphant. "Do you have access to your full power? Can you activate the full potential of your cells?"

This question was justified. They both knew that the material this body was made of had the possibility for far greater power than their initial stage. Their transformations and the so called God Ki for example.

"I have," the creature answered. "The cells received from both Emperor Freezer and Lord Cooler are working perfectly. And so are the one from these Saiyajins we have watched in other timelines. As my data had already stated, the integration into my system was a full success.

With the modifications I - or rather my old AI-self - had made, I am now able to use my own version of these powers."

"Very good. I fear soon - very soon - Freezer will come to realize that his rule has ended," Doctor Gero grinned. "And now the reign of the Jinzoningen will beginn."

It was in this moment that the newly created Cell suddenly felt a power rise up at another part of the planet. One that was unknown to him and that had not been there before. At the same time he felt the energy of several soldiers disappearing.

While technically, you could see him as a completely new lifeform, this Cell possessed the entire knowledge and the consciousness of the AI Ne-Me-Sys. And so he knew instantly the place where this new ki signature had just appeared - the trans-dimensional portal.

"Doctor Gero," he addressed him, "we might have a small problem. Could you check on the control-center of the trans-dimensional transport-system?"

A bit surprised, Gero did what his new creation had asked him and a frown appeared on his face a moment later.

"There was a message that an unknown being is attacking the fascility. Then the message suddenly stopped..."

"I see," Cell replied. "It seems that the soldiers had not managed to stop this unknown."

"No," Gero commented, "but this could also be an opportunity for us, right? I am sure `Emperor´ Freezer will want to deal with this interloper in person."

"... And then his might be our perfect chance to get him in the open and in the best case, even vulnerable," Cell continued.

"Very good. You are reading my thoughts my dear Cell."

"It was you who has programmed me Doctor," the Android responded drily.

xxxxxxx

Somewhere else, Future 18 and Bulma had now finally arrived in the timeline they had originally trying to reach... the past - not their own, but the one they had been in contact with for the last 11 years of their world.

But that didn´t change that Trunks, Pan and Marron were still missing.

... And of course, there was the fact that Mai was now with them.

THis timelines version of Bulma had been more than a bit surprised to see an younger (or more likely same aged version) of one of Pilaf´s old henchmen with them. But she had accepted it after a short explanation of how Mai came to be how she was. She had truly seen much stranger things in her life.

Both Bulma´s, she and her counterpart from this timeline - along with their father - were now working together, trying to locate them.

"So you say you think **that** was the reason?" Future Bulma questioned her other self.

"I am pretty sure. You transported literally in the same moment your planet exploded around you," she answered. "It seems this had destabilized the wormhole the Portal had created.

But this is not everything. I didn´t quite understand it either at the beginning, but it seems something else had also interfered with your travel."

"Something else?" Future Bulma questioned.

"Another transport through the hyperspace," Bulma replied.

"Another time-traveller," her father Doctor Briefs pointed out. "or someone else who travels between universes, whatever. You can see it like two people who are running in the dark against each other... well..."

It was quite clear that his future-daughter didn´t quite understood... yet.

"As yours became unstable, the two wormholes seemed to have somehow crossed and interacted with each other. That led to you all appearing in the wrong universes."

"That makes sense," Future 18 spoke up. Like the others, she wanted Trunks, their daughter Pan and Marron back... and that meant figuring out what exactly happened was the best they could do right now.

"Mai here has told us that their Trunks had travelled back to the past to get help against this Black character, just a short time earlier. If I think about it, it is good possible that we have arrived in her world just in the moment when he had travelled back."

"Yes, that is very likely... and this is why this is the best news of the day." Bulma smiled.

"Why is that?" Eighteen asked her.

"We have landed in his world at the point where their Trunks had started from," Future Bulma realized. "That means there is a good chance that the others are..."

"... at the point in the past timeline he had travelled to," the other Bulma finished for her.

xxxxxxx

Back in the other past, Marron and Pan had by now spend nearly two hours with Marron´s `parents´ and her own younger self. For her it was nearly as if she was back at the time she was a young child, as her original family was still alive.

But only looking at her young double told her that this was not the case - not really.

And they all were still dumbfounded from the story they had just heard from them...

"So we died in your time?" 18 asked her. "In a battle against an evil version of Trunks from another timeline and a Demon Lord he had allied himself with? And Trunks - the Trunks from the future - has taken you in?"

"Yes," she replied sadly. "At first I didn´t even knew it about you. I - we all - thought the other 18 was you. She had switched sides, or at least pretended to, a short time earlier and they decided to give her a chance. We didn´t knew which of you had been killed.

She had just, taken your role... pretended to be my mother," Marron said grimly, with anger she had not held for a long time. "After they found out, they decided not to tell me for some time and let me believe that my real mother was still alive. They thought it would be too much for me to find out that both my parents died in such a short time.

... And maybe it would have been." She clenched her fist. "I am not even sure how I would have reacted," she admitted.

"She doesn´t even know how happy she is." She was looking at her other self, who was playing in some distance at the other end of the room, not hearing that much of their conversation. Actually they had made sure not to talk **too** loud.

"I can understand why they decided in the end to keep it from me for a few years. But still, the thought that she so simply decided to pretend to be my mother and just take over her life..."

Pan next to her looked somewhat ashamed about what her mother had done.

"I am sorry. I know Mom can be somewhat of a bitch," she said.

xxx

The truth was, this was far from the first thing that Pan knew about her mother. She had grown up with tales told by the people of her world, about the reign of terror the Androids had held for 17 years, how they devastated most of the town on the planet and wiped out more than half of the population.

She also knew that her mother and her brother had killed Son Gohan, her father´s teacher and best friend - ironically the same man whose daughter´s name she was carrying.

And then of course how this terrible counterpart of her father - The Priest - had brought them back to life and they allied themselves with him. How they had helped him attack the Z-fighters and killed even more people.

Together with him, they had even assisted the alien dictator named Bojack in an attack on Earth - Marron´s dimension - that killed thousands of people.

Sometimes Pan asked herself how her father could have ever managed to forgive her. She knew he had hated her for years... most of his life actually. And then she felt ashamed.

What in the world had caused him to change his mind about 18 so completely? she sometimes asked herself.

But on the other side, by what she heard, her grandfather Vegeta had not been so much different.

xxx

"You know I would never blame you," Marron said, giving her `little sister´ a warm smile. "And I have forgiven 18 a long time ago. It is just that the thought sometimes still unsettles me."

In this moment they all felt a large power that had suddenly appeared on their planet... a very dark and menacing power.

xxxxxxx

Meanwhile in the same world, a few miles of of West City, Vegeta and Son Goku had begun to train with the Trunks, who had arrived in their timeline one day before... to help him for his fight with his mysterious enemy Goku Black.

... and also to prepare for this new version of Freezer´s Empire.

But in this moment they realized that they would have to get active earlier than they had expected... as they sensed the being that had just materialized himself in their world not too far away from them.

It was a power Mirai Trunks knew all too well - Black.

xxx

Several miles away, the being called Goku Black was looking down at the surface of the planet Earth... an Earth not touched by his cleansing fire... yet. Still full of despicable mortals.

After his short confrontation and the disappearance of the small group of strangers, Black had decided to test out a theory. He had - call it a hunch - where his old `friend´ Trunks and also the others, had gone to.

And so he decided to use his time-ring to return to the past, to the same timeline where he had originally come from... before he discovered the world where the God of Destruction was no longer alive.

And as it turned out, he had been right. In the distance he could sense Trunks energy... not far away from another being he knew and that he hated like barely another one... Son Goku.

* * *

A quite short chapter. But one that set the stages for the things that will come later.

As it is implied here, Cell has access to God ki... and also the potential of Freezer´s Golden Form, however changed, since cells from other beings are mixed into him.

To the powerlevels mentioned here:

Take for comparison a Buu saga level SSJ3 at 20 to 22 billion... and the original Cell at around around 3 to 3,2 billion (Around 4,2 billion after his self-destruction).

And as it is implied, this Cell can get even stronger.

 **Reply to Guest reviews:** Yes, "Ultra Instinct" was great... and finally an actually unique new form in Super.

While the fight Goku vs. Giren was mostly good (aside from blantly copying Goku vs. Freezer on Namek), some of the other fights were going on my nerves, especially with some fighters `somehow´ going against fighters who should be clearly outmatching them.

Especially Goku constantly fighting in base against opponents clearly superior to it.

Ribrianne for example goes from tieing against SSJ Vegeta to fighting equally with 17, who threw SSJ Goku around like a rag-doll and who SSB Goku didn´t bring to show his full power... to **fighting Goku in base**... and then back to taking a kick from Goku´s SSB form right into her neck, when she was off-guard and standing up as if nothin happened?

xxx

 **What is to say about SSJ4 Broly against anyone?** The form had never actually appeared in any canon or non-canon show, so we can only speculate how strong it would have been. Or how strong Broly would have been in his other forms if he had ever reached it.

The showings in video-games never really show their canon strength.


	8. Chapter 8: G vs G and C vs F

**Chapter 8  
**

The fight between Goku and his bizarre double called Goku Black had just started.

Their clash could be sensed around the world. Even if both fighters were still far from using their full power. They were so far only testing each other out.

In the moment Goku was in his SSj state - that, just like his base form, had grown exponentially more powerful since he had started using God Ki - and Black was matching him in power.

Vegeta and Mirai Trunks were standing close by and watching.

"I had alway wanted to fight you in this body," Black commented.

"So you know me," Goku stated.

"You could say that. But I have already told you enough," his double replied. He charged up a ki attack... and instantly fired it at the real son Goku, who for a split second powered up in God form and easily blocked.

"Ah yes, the `God Ki´," Black commented, "a filthy Mortal like you using a power that you have no claim or right to."

"What the heck are you talking about?" Goku questioned. "Ah, I see," he said in realization a moment later. "You are truly some kind of God, like Beerus and Whiz have suspected."

"You will find out soon enough," he responded. "When I come back for you to destroy you."

"I wouldn´t count on that," the saiyan called out.

Once again Goku powered up. This time he transformed directly into SSj blue and this time he stayed in this form.

He rushed forward and landed a sharp blow on Black.

Goku´s twisted double was being hit with an incredible force and crashed into a rock formation below them.

xxx

From some distance, both Beerus and Whiz were watching the fight.

"There is no doubt. We were right, this Goku Black character is some kind of God," Beerus murmured.

"Yes, not only is he clearly using some kind of Divine Ki," his Angel responded, "there is also the portara earring he is wearing on one ear."

"So much is clear," Beerus sneered. "Whatever, since this guy is clearly a threat to the balance of the universe, I guess I should better take him out."

"Goku-san won´t like this," Whiz stated. "He is just fighting him and he won´t be happy if you interrupt it."

"Do I look like someone who cares?" the God of Destruction growled.

xxx

Goku was looking down at his opponent, while Black glared up to him with a hateful expression, his battered body lying inside a deep crack in the really didn´t look like he was in a good state.

A shame, Goku thought. He had just been starting to enjoy this fight. But it seemed this enemy was not strong enough for SSjBlue. Well, he looked like him - so maybe he could transform as well.

But then the glare on Black´s features turned into a grin.

Le lifted up his left arm... making a gesture as if he wanted to grab at something... something on his other arm.

"Son Goku - I will enjoy crushing you once and for all when the time comes," he said. "But for now I must thank you for this fight. You have done me a greater favor than you know."

In this moment however something happened what never of them had expected, Lord Beerus suddenly appeared next to them.

In his hand, Son Goku noticed, he was charging up a blast of Destruction energy... ready to unleash it.

But in the same moment, Black had already touched the object on his hand that he had been reaching for - an on the first look unremarkable ring - and suddenly he disappeared before their eyes. Or better said, a small time-portal had opened right behind him and swallowed him, before either of his opponents could react.

"Damn it," Beerus swore as he saw that his target had fled.

"What was that?" Goku asked.

"That," Whiz stated, who just had showed up a few meters beside them, "was a time-ring. It was obviously the way he had come to our time in the first place."

A second later he was followed by Vegeta and Trunks, who had been following the fight from some distance as well.

"Time ring?" Goku asked.

"Yes, Kaioshins use them normally to travel through time and between dimensions," Whiz explained. "But that is exactly the problem. Normally **only** a Kaioshin should have access to them."

"Then, how did this Black got one?" Vegeta questioned.

"That is just the question," Whiz responded.

"It is too bad he had escaped," Mirai Trunks said grimly. "We could have taken him out here and now."

"Beerus, you were just about to kill him, right?" Goku stated.

"Yes."

"But that is unfair. I was just fighting him. I wanted to know if he could have powered up even more," Goku responded.

"I don´t care right now if you wanted a good fight," Beerus shouted at him. "This guy had caused lots of trouble in the other timeline and by all we know he could do the same here. I we could have stopped him here and now, then so better."

A few seconds later, Pan and Marron arrived as well, closely followed by Krillin, who had been sensing the ongoing fight.

The small Z-fighter and his time-traveller daughter would have rather stayed home and left this fight to Son Goku, Trunks and Vegeta, who they all knew could take care of things far better than them.

But Pan, acting like a typical saiyan, just couldn´t help herself and was overcome by her curiousity. She wanted to see the fight and what was going on. So she flew off.

Marron and Krillin decided to follow her, while 18 stayed to take care of Marron´s younger self.

When they arrived however, they realized that everything was already over.

"It seems we are to late," Marron stated.

"Damn," Pan said quietly. "Did you win Uncle Goku?" she asked him.

"You could call it like that," Goku replied. "My opponent fled after all."

"But he got away," Vegeta added. "So we will most likely have to face him again."

xxxxxxx

 _In `Mirai Trunks´ future timeline_

Black had just returned, nearly to the same spot where he had started from.

"It seems it didn´t went so well," he heard a smooth voice. "Or that is at least what it looks like, right?"

"Yes," Black said grinning, turning to the other figure, the Kaio, who had just addressed him. "That fool Son Goku thinks he has beaten me. But the damage I have just received only brings me closer to my goal," he stated.

"It would have been better of course, if you had access to the full potential of this body from the beginning. But I guess you can not have everything, right?"

"Maybe if I had spoken my wish more precisely from the beginning," Black thought loud... "but it doesn´t matter. What is done is done. And soon I will **have** the full strength of Son Goku... and more. If only this bastard Beerus had not been. I look out to kill him in that world as well. Soon." He turned to his partner.

"Trust me Zamasu, it will all turn out as planned," Black told him.

It wasn´t over, he thought. No, this was just the beginning. For the moment Son Goku might think he had won, but the damage he received today would only help him to get stronger and unleash the full potential of this saiyan body.

xxxxxxx

 _Freezer´s Empire timeline_

Meanwhile, in the universe the other Trunks had been send to, he had just found a possible way back.

The few terrified techs who were left of the garrison of the fascility didn´t tried to put up any resistence and showed him nearly instantly how the dimensional transfer-device worked.

They clearly thought that Trunks would kill them all in cold blood or even torture them before that, if they didn´t cooperated. This was no surprise, he thought - since they were used to working under Freezer.

Trunks saw no real reason to tell them otherwise. After all it was exactly their fear why he didn´t need to **actually** use physical violence on them.

Of course it was possible that Freezer would kill them anyway if he found out that they helped him. But ultimately, it had been the choice of this men to work for him. At least he hoped it had been a choice and that Freezer had not just forced them into his service.

Still, he did what he had to do. He was just one step away from having a way back - not exactly to his own world of course, but to the past he and his family had been in contact with, the world Marron came from.

He would contact the others and then... they would return together and put an end to all this here. This version of Freezer´s Empire could not be allowed to continue and attack and plunder even more worlds.

If he was honest, he would have liked nothing more than to go and challenge Freezer by himself. His saiyan side was actually screaming at him to do exactly that. But he knew that the risk was just too great.

The chance was very low that Freezer - any version of him - would actually fight fair if it came down to it.

If he had any doubts he could take Trunks one to one, he would possibly send his troops on him to wear him down - maybe even sacrificing hundreds of soldiers doing it. The Freezer he had met wouldn´t have hesitated a second to do that and he doubted this one would either.

"W-we have located the reality you have been looking for sir," one of the technicians addressed him. "Do you want us to set up a contact?"

"Very good," Trunks said. "Do it."

There was also another worry in the back of his mind, that he had since his strange dream. Could it be true? he asked himself. And if yes, was there a chance that the personality of The Priest could somehow take root inside him and change him?

No, he told himself. He was too strong for that, he would not let this happen. He would not be defeated by a mere phantom of a long dead enemy.

It was then however, when he first sensed it. A new powerlevel was suddenly rising up somewhere on the planet, a giantic one. What was going on?

But a second later, he realized something that unsettled him even more. The energy he felt was identical with Freezer´s (who was on he other side of the planet). Or at least it was for a moment. Then it suddenly changed and felt more like a saiyans, more precisely like Son Goku´s and then like his own father´s - Vegeta. But all this energies were originating at exactly the same place.

Trunks realized what - who - this had to be... Cell. He must exist in this world as well.

How? Had Doctor Gero or at least his computer survived all this time?

But this Cell was easily dozens of times stronger than the one he had met in the past had ever been... and Trunks knew that he might not even be powered up. How strong was this Cell truly? And how was he related to Freezer? Was he another one of his servants... or was he his enemy?

Trunks question was answered a short time later.

xxxxxxx

At the same time, Cell (a.k.a Ne-Me-Sys) and Doctor Gero were flying side by side over the landscape close to the planet´s capital (the former Central City)... heading straight in the direction of Freezer´s palace.

Gero knew there was no way Freezer had not noticed the power-up of his latest and best creation. So they would make a `visit´ to him first.

His patience was now paying out. He had spend decades working `loyally´ for Freezer. Just like he had been working for years for Commander Red. In both cases he had been bidding his time, for the chance to take over himself.

And in both cases they had never noticed what was developing right under their eyes. Very soon he would have the pleasure of seeing Freezer´s face when he finally realized, Gero thought.

As soon as the were passing the city border, a group of two dozen soldiers from Emperor Freezer´s personal guard were coming, flying in their direction.

"Doctor Gero," the leader greeted him as soon as they came into reach, "what are you doing here? His Majesty had not summoned you. Is this one of your new creations?" he asked, looking at Cell.

"Yes indeed," Gero said darkly, "my newest Ultimate Creation actually. I am here to present him to `Lord´ Freezer in person."

"Nobody has ordered you to do that Gero," the officer replied arrogantly. The man was obviously not realizing in what situation he was in. "If **Emperor** Freezer", he said, pronouncing the title, "wants to see your newest pet robot, he will tell you."

"Oh, but we insist. Cell, would you please show them what exactly you are about?"

The being named Cell raised his right hand... and before any of the soldiers had even any chance to react, he had shot a volley of blasts through the leader and three others of them. Ironically it was a replica of one of Freezer´s techniques, the Death Beam.

The rest of the soldiers only now fully realized what had happened. But for them, all of them, it was already too late.

Three more died through the same attacks, before the other had even a chance to react.

Then Cell switched to hand to hand combat and chopped two more apart with a single blow each.

The rest of the group who was still alive now fled in a panic. Cell allowed them to fly away for about about a kilometer or a bit more, letting them think for a moment that maybe they could get away.

Then he gathered energy in his palm to kill them all at once.

A moment later they all were hit by a wave of energy and reduced to their particles.

But it had not been Cell who had fired this attack. He still had his energy gathered in his hand.

No, the one who had killed the fleeing soldiers was Freezer himself, who had just appeared in the sky over the capital.

He was looking at the spot where his soldiers had been a moment earlier in disgust.

"Weaklings," he said.

Cell and Gero were turning around to him.

"Lord Freezer - or maybe **only** Freezer now - how nice to see you."

"Doctor Gero," the Emperor replied, "can it be that you have brought a surprise for me?"

"Oh yes, I have, the last gift you will ever receive," he told him sarcastically. "Cell," he gave the order.

... and the Bio Android started to power up even more.

xxxxxxx

Trunks realized what exactly was going on in the moment Cell started to fight with Freezer´s troops.

A battle was breaking out over the planet.

Meanwhile the technicians were still working to establish contact to the other timeline.

Less than a minute later he sensed Cell´s power clashing with Freezer´s himself.

"Sir, we have made contact," the same technician like before told him. "If you want we can send you through."

He had done it, Trunks thought. He could return to the others.

But what about...?

Both Cell´s and Freezer´s powers were rising. When they fought, he knew, there was a good chance that they could devastate the entire planet. He knew all too well how ruthless and evil the counterparts of both of them had been.

Even if this planet - this Earth - was being ruled by Freezer, there were still millions of innocent people here. People who had never a choice to live under his rule.

Could he really simply leave now?

* * *

Okay, here is the new chapter. The part involving Freezer´s interdimensional empire is starting to come to it´s climax.

To the guest reviewer: Yes, I will try to concentrate more on one timeline at once and end the involvement of a few of them as quick as possible.


	9. Chapter 9: Meeting again

**Chapter 9  
**

 _Freezer´s Empire Universe_

Trunks had made his decision.

He could not just leave this world behind like this. There was no telling how much damage the fight between these two maniacs would cause. The planet might not survive this.

He turned around.

But first.

"I want to send a message through the portal," he said to one of Freezer´s techs. "When you have done that, you can go free.

By the way, I think it would be better for you all when you don´t mention anything of this to your superiors. You know how your Emperor can be. If he knew you had been helping me, all your lives might be forfeit."

His words had the desired effect. The look of fear was unmistakable on all their faces.

Trunks turned around and quickly left the building, leaving the still scared soldiers behind. Hopefully his mother and his friends in he past timeline had gotten his message and would come to help him.

He was quite confident that the soldiers wouldn´t inform their Master about the fact that they had let him manipulating the Dimensional Transfer Device to send it, unless they wanted to face Freezer´s wrath for allowing him to do it in the first place.

For the moment however, he had another worry... the battle ahead of him.

The power of both, Freezer and this new version of Cell, was unsettling. They were still far away from his own level... by what they were showing at least.

But he also knew that it was very likely that they were not showing their true strenght yet. So there was no telling how strong these two truly were.

He decided to hurry up... and to stop concealing himself. If Freezer and Cell realized that there was another player in the game, it might cause them to slow down their fight for the moment.

 **xxxxxxx**

A large distance away, this universe´s version of Freezer and Cell had started to exchanged blows.

And like Trunks had suspected, so far neither of them was really serious, only testing each other out.

Until they all suddenly felt the other power - Trunks power - rising up and coming closer to them.

`What is this?´ Freezer thought. The powerlevel was incredible high. But it was none of his soldiers. A intruder. `What was a being like this doing on his world?´

"A new power," Cell stated calmly.

"`Lord´ Freezer - can it be that you have a new warrior in your army that I had not been informed about?" Doctor Gero asked him sarcastically.

The Emperor however had only a frown on his face.

"Oh, I know nothing about this newcomer," he admitted. "It seems we have an intruder in my capital. I will just deal with him after I am finished with the two of you."

With this words he fired a couple of Death Beams at Cell, who however managed to evade both of them.

"And you think you can do that?" the Bio-Android asked him confidently. He blocked a hard strike from Freezer with his arm.

This `Cell´ didn´t possess quite the same arrogance, like most of his alternate timeline´s counterparts did. Since he was in fact the artificial intelligence of Dr. Gero´s super-computer, instead of Cell´s own personallity, grown by years of automatical indotrination.

But he was well aware about his own strength.

Freezer finally managed to hit him with one of his Death Beams, but the attack left barely any visibly damage.

"Now, it seems that this wasn´t quite enough. It seems I should finally take this serious," the tyrant stated.

With this words, Freezer gathered his energy... and begann another transformation.

His powerlevel was now not only rising, it was literally exploding. A blinding light was shining over the entire area...

... and a moment later Freezer´s entire form had turned golden.

"I have to admit Doctor Gero, I am truly impressed that you have managed to create an Android this strong. Had you decided to stay loyal and offer me this... well, Cell as a warrior, I would have gladly rewarded you with everything you wanted. I would have even given you an entire star system," Golden Freezer told him.

"But now I fear I have to put both you and your little creation down. It is a shame. Such a waste of power and skill. But I have no need for subordinates who betray me."

Gero only laughed.

"Oh Freezer, as always your arrogance gets the better of you. Do you really think I have not thought about this little detail?" he asked. "Cell!"

At his word, the Bio Android followed Freezer´s example and started to power up.

His ki was rising more and more, to a level rivalling - maybe even surpassing - his opponent.

As he was finished, parts of his green armored body - his wings, his chest and his underarmd - had turned into the same golden color as Freezer´s own. The golden light was literally shining through his hard insectoid-like outer shell.

But the strength of his opponent was not the only reason Freezer had decided to transform. He could sense that the mysterious intruder was close by and would appear any second.

In this moment Trunks appeared before them. He had already powered up into super saiyajin.

Freezer recognized the from instantly. It was the same one like the cursed saiyan called Son Goku, who had nearly killed him all those years ago on Namek.

"A saiyan," he said loud... the anger in his voice clearly to hear. In this universe the saiyajins didn´t exist anymore for a long time. He had made sure of that. So where did this one came from? He was even a super saiyajin. There was no way he would have missed the existence of someone like this... unless.

He took a closer look at the stranger. Of course... he remembered something.

xxx

Trunks had sensed it as well before he even arrived here, the sudden burst of power in both of his enemies.

As he had finally reached them, he saw what had happened.

This Freezer was in a different form than the one he had killed all those years ago in the past. His power seemed nearly unbelievable. It surpassed even Cooler´s by far. That was no real surprise, in the end his brother had been his subordinate after all.

"Freezer," Trunks said, "and Doctor Gero as well."

"Well, who do we have here?" Freezer asked him sardonically.

"That is a good question," Doctor Gero agreed. "There is no data about him."

"That is correct. There is no information about the existence of a warrior like this," Cell agreed.

Feezer however chuckled.

"You aren´t some saiyan who had escaped my affords, aren´t you?" he stated. "No, you are from another reality, aren´t you? Yes, you look exactly like the description Cooler gave about the opponent his troops were facing on the planet Earth he had been send to conquer. Congratulations for beating him by the way. And now you have somehow managed to come here and infiltrate my capital itself."

Both Gero and Cell were now looking at the newcomer in surprise.

"You are right," Trunks admitted. "I came from this world... and I am here to stop you and to make sure that you never threaten my home again." `No, he was here by pure accident and had only been trying to find a way back home, before he had sensed these two here clashing with each other,´ Trunks thought. But there was no reason to let Freezer know this.

"Oh really? Then show what you can saiyan," Freezer sneered.

Trunks started to power up, he pushed his strength - augmented by the God ki he had learned to use years ago - to the maximum.

But to his shock Freezer and Cell were doing the same thing.

xxxxxxx

 _Past timeline_

After the short fight with Goku Black, things were continuing like they did before.

Goku and Vegeta had decided they would help Mirai Trunks and return to him to his future... to take down Black.

Before that however, Beerus and Whiz had decided to do something else... and to take Son Goku along doing it. They both had for some time the suspicion that this Goku Black might be either a god, one who had gone rogue, or was at least connected to one.

Now that they had seen him in person, they knew that they were right.

But that was not everything they had noticed. They had sensed Black´s ki... and it reminded them of someone, another person they had recently met... a Kaio from Universe 10 to be precise. Gowasu, the Kaioshin of the universe had visited Universe 7 some time ago and brough his student along, and it was this student´s energy that was remarkable similar to their enemy´s.

"Do you really think that is a good idea Lord Beerus?" Goku asked him. "We want to go to the future as soon and possible and we are still training with Trunks."

"Yes I do," Beerus replied. "If this Zamasu is somehow connected to this Black character, it is the best if we keep an eye on him. Before they start doing the same thing in our timeline as well. And since you are the one who actually fought Black directly, you are coming with us."

"You have to admit, Lord Beerus has a point here," Whiz said. "Besides that, is Trunks not currently visiting your son Gohan? So you wouldn´t be able to train with him anyway at the moment."

"Okay okay," Goku replied. "You are right."

Bulma and the other meanwhile would try to help Marron and Pan to find a way to return to the timeline Marron originally came from.

Little did they knew that this was unnecassary. Because that timeline had already found them.

xxxxxxx

A few miles outside of West City, another portal was opening... and out of it stepped four people. This four were nobody else than the two Androids 17 and 18 and Mirai Bulma and Mai.

The two Androids however were not truly from the same timeline.

"Are you coming?" 18 asked them impatiently.

"Wait a moment Eighteen," her `brother´ said.

"Wait? My daughter is somewhere out there," 18 said. "I won´t waste anymore time to find her."

"Your daughter **and** my niece," 17 responded.

"Who also my granddaughters," Mirai Bulma claimed sharply. "And my son, who had landed god knows where. So I want to find them just as much as you."

"But we don´t know **anything** about this timeline here," 17 stated. "For all we know we and Goku and the others could still be enemies in this world. How do you think they would react then if you suddenly burst in without warning?

If you want to go and get yourself shot, good. But I won´t let you drag me into it. Or put our chances to actually find Marron or Pan into danger, just because you couldn´t wait two minutes."

xxx

He had a hard time holding down his anger. One thing was clear between them and had always been: He could not stand **this** Eighteen.

She was not his sister. No, his true sister had died years ago.

He had at first been against letting Marron go with her and the Trunks from the future. Letting his niece go to the future, with a once murderous double of his sister. The thought alone sounded ludicrous. But Marron had already lost her father a few months before. He didn´t knew what the knowledge that her mother was dead as well would have done to her at that time.

So having Future 18 around, pretending to be her had ultimately been a blessing in disguise. But that didn´t mean that he liked it.

A part of him had been willing to blast the impostor out of the universe, when they first found out all those years ago. It was Trunks who had convinced him not to.

In the end he had agreed to give her a chance. But that didn´t meant that he liked her attitude. And right now her impatience endangered everything.

xxx

"We will go together," 17 said. "We carry Bulma and Mai here with us. That will also make sure that no jumpy saiyajin will shoot at us first and ask questions later."

"Hey moment Seventeen! We are not meat-shields," Mirai Bulma protested.

"You of course aren´t," 17 responded. "But your presence alone should convince them that we are not the enemy - or at least show them that we are not from their timeline and give us the time to explain who we are."

"Sometimes it´s too bad that your brother is that smart, right?" Bulma commented to 18.

"I have told you, she is not my sister," 17 responded.

"But sometimes you are acting just like him," Mirai 18 remarked.

"Aside from the entire blowing up cities, killing humans for fun, terrorizing the planet and killing Z-fighters thing you mean?" countered 17. "Now let us knock on Capsule Corp´s door," he said.

xxxxxxx

And so the inhabitants of Capsule Corp got another shocking surprise just a few minutes later... as two Androids, a second Bulma and an (once again) adult Mai were ringing on their door.

The present Bulma was only starring at the group of newcomers with an open mouth for a few moments. The same was going for the young version of Trunks and the Pilaf gang, who were standing close to her.

The young Trunks in particular, a few of them noticed, was especially starring at the older Mai.

"You - you are," Bulma stammered.

"Yes," Mirai Bulma replied.

"We are looking for two girls named Pan and Marron," Mirai 18 said. "Have you seen them?"

"And Trunks," Mai said, "he is here, isn´t he? This is the past he had wanted to travel to, right?"

"Ahm, yes he is," Bulma answered, "and Marron and the girl named Pan too. They told us they had somehow arrived here by accident."

"Yes, as far as we could find out, their transport had somehow interacted with Trunks and send them here instead of the timeline they had wanted to reach," Mirai Bulma stated.

"I - I see," the present Bulma replied.

"Are they here?" Mirai 18 asked.

"Ahm - no, the girls are right now with your counterpart and Krillin. And Trunks said he wanted to visit Son Gohan. Wait - I will call them."

"Thank you," Mirai Bulma said.

"So I guess things are here pretty much like they had been in my own world?" 17 stated. "18 is married to Krillin?"

"Yes," Bulma replied.

"They had been in my world as well, before they died."

"I am sorry," Bulma said.

"I just want to find them, especially Marron."

"I understand."

Mai turned to the younger version of herself and her two companions.

"Pilaf, Shuu, I am happy to see you again," she greeted them.

"Ahm hello Mai," Pilaf said, still surprised.

"... Yes, it is good to see you," Shuu fell in.

"Hello ahm me..." young Mai replied.

Young Trunks was looking at her with a visible blush on his face.

"Nice to meet you Mai," he said quietly.

Bulma meanwhile was calling Son Gohan.

xxxxxxx

 _Gohan´s home_

Mirai Trunks, the one who had come from the same timeline as Mai, admitted he wasn´t quite sure how to feel, as he was sitting on the couch in the living room in front of Gohan´s family.

As he had seen him for the first time after so many years, this Gohan had seemed so different from the man who had trained him.

His mother had already told him that he had mostly given up on fighting some time ago. So it wasn´t a surprise that he didn´t sense the same power from him as during the Cell Games. He admitted, a part of him would have preferred if Gohan had kept up his training, so that he would be a greater help against Black.

But on the other side, he had also met his family - his wife Videl and the Baby named Pan - the same name as the blonde girl who claimed to be the daughter of an alternate version of himself. Who had been named after this baby, as she told them. And there was even that oaf from the Cell Games - Mister Satan - who just happened to be Videl´s father.

His Master at often told him how he wished he could live a peaceful life, how he sometimes imagined how it were if he had a family. And now this Gohan here... he was happy.

Trunks knew that he was barely holding back tears as he looked at them.

In this moment however they were getting a call.

"Yes - Bulma?" Gohan said as he picked up the phone. "Trunks is still here, yes. Okay, I will give him to you."

"Mother?" Trunks said.

"Trunks, something has happened," Bulma told him. "We have gotten a few visitors. Well, a few **more** visitors. And one especially wanted to talk to you. Wait - I will let her tell you herself."

He heard how his mother was handing the phone to someone else. He wondered who it could be.

"Trunks?" he heard the voice a moment later, a voice he knew perfectly well. He could not believe it.

"Mai?" he asked in shock. "How? I thought you were dead."

"That - that is a long story. Someone had appeared when Black was trying to kill me. They had saved me from him... and they had brought me here to the past."

Trunks could still not believe it. This time he realized that there were actually tears rolling from his eyes.

xxxxxxx

 _Freezer´s Empire´s Universe_

Trunks had realized it nearly as soon as Freezer had landed his first punch on him. But it took him a few seconds - and a few blows - longer, before he fully accepted it as true.

Freezer - this Freezer - was stronger than him.

And this Cell, who had powered up as well now, seemed to be too.

It was no impossible great difference. But it was enough to put him in a severely disadvantage. Especially since he was facing two opponents at once. It was his luck that this versions of Cell and Freezer were enemies as well.

Had his two opponents actually been working together, instead of fighting each other, he would already not longer be standing.

The three enemies were throwing attacks at each other.

He and Freezer were for a few moments exchanging blows with each other, before they had to dodge a Kamehameha Cell was sending at both of them.

* * *

This is now the next chapter.

I will probably not adapt most of the Goku Black Arc, since it will mostly not turn out that different from the original. And I will concentrate instead on the battle against the alternate Freezer and Cell.


	10. Chapter 10: The worst possibility

**Chapter 10**

To say Mirai Trunks was shocked would be an understatement. Before him were standing two mirror images of the Androids he had defeated years ago... together with Mai and a double of his mother Bulma.

"Mom?" he had asked.

"I am sorry Trunks," she had replied. "I am not your mother. I am from another timeline than yours. But it is very similar. I came here to find my Trunks... and Marron and Pan."

"I - I see," he said.

"But he is not here, isn´t he?" the other Bulma stated. "I mean not in this timeline at all."

"No," her other self responded.

"If he were, we would have sensed him a long time ago," Vegeta added. "So sorry, he is clearly not here."

"And you?" Mirai Trunks turned to the Androids.

"I am here because I am looking for Trunks - my Trunks - and **our** daugther," 18 said.

"Your what!?" Mirai Trunks called out, not quite believing what he had just been hearing.

"Don´t look at me, I am just here for my niece," 17 added. He gave a short look to the female Android standing right next to him. "Just to make this sure from the beginning, this woman here is not truly my sister. She is from the same alternate world as the Trunks we are looking for. Marron is actually the daughter of my real sister, who Trunks and her had adopted... after she died."

It was actually far more complicated, he thought. But no reason to go even more into detail. It was already complicated enough.

"No need to throw this information around their heads like this Seventeen," 18 stated, looking at the flabbergasted native Z-warriors and their friends.

"No reason to hold it up. They will find out sooner or later anyway," her `brother´ replied.

Trunks needed a few moments to let the information sink in, what 17 was implying.

If Marron was his niece, then this was obviously a version of the Past-Seventeen he had met. But when **this** 18 was not his sister, then... from the same timeline as the other Trunks. Then... this was the same killer he had known from his childhood?

Or at least she might **had** been like that at one point. No, he couldn´t be sure about that.

He had known that Marron was 18´s daughter - the one of **this** world´s 18, not her murderous counterpart.

Krillin, he could understand.

Yes. But this? Another version of himself, who had as it seemed gone through the same horror... and her? This was just insane.

What in the world had his other self been thinking?

No, he knew he was jumping into conclussions here. He could not be sure what exactly had happened in these timeline after all.

xxx

They heard it ringing at the door in this moment. It seemed Krillin ad Eighteen had arrived together with the two girls.

"Mom," Pan called out happily as soon as they saw the newcomers and ran towards them. Everyone was watching as the Android put her into her arms.

"I am so happy to see you," the girl said.

"I guess you can understand why we haven´t told you right away who Pan´s parents are," he heard Marron saying to him. "It would have been just... too complicated."

He nodded.

"I understand that perfectly," Trunks replied. "You are right, it would have been too complicated... and we all had other worries on our minds," he admitted. "But tell me, in her world... had she been like... in mine?"

The expression on Marron´s face was enough for him to know the answer.

"She had changed a great deal from that time," she said. "Back then... well, they had to work together against a common enemy and afterwards... she just began to change."

Of course she had, Mirai Trunks thought. Otherwise his counterpart would have never accepted her, no matter how screwed up he might be.

In this moment 17 saw that the special communication device he was carrying with himself was receiving a message. Bulma - the one of his own timeline - had given it to him as a way to stay in contact with their own world and time. The device was connected to the Portal and allowed them so to send messages over time and space.

The Android pressed the call-button.

"17, do you hear me?" It was Bulma´s voice. This was kind of confusing to the others, since they already had two Bulma´s here.

"Yes I am here," Seventeen replied. "We have just found Marron and Pan... but Trunks is not with them."

"I know. It seems the malfunction send him to yet another timeline as the girls. We just got a message from him. The good news is that he was able to contact us."

"And the bad news?" 18 asked worried.

"The timeline he has been send to is the same one where our enemies came from."

"What!" the blonde Android called out.

"... and he is in trouble," Bulma continued. "It seems he was forced to get involved into a fight in that world. And his opponents are very strong."

"Who is he fighting with?" Son Goku wanted to know.

xxxxxxx

 _Freezer´s Empire Universe_

Meanwhile in another timeline, Trunks was in trouble. Cell had by now fully powered up - at least by what he claimed - and Freezer had followed his example.

Both of his opponents were now above him in strength. The only good thing was that both were fighting each other as much as they were fighting him. But that fact would in the bext case give him a bit more time before he went down.

Trunks knew he had only one chance.

Freezer move forward and landed a hard punch on him. But Cell in turn used the opening to send a volley of blasts at both of them.

Trunks baraly managed to avoid being hit by them, even if his side still hurt from Freezer´s attack. He saw how a mountainside behind them was blown up instead.

Trunks knew he was powerful, more than powerful by any mortal standard. But these two were even beyond him.

He would have no chance... if it were not for his continued training with the God Ki. The after-effects of his original SSj God transformation had strengthened his body immensely and with the divine ki integrated into his regular one, he was stronger than he had ever though possible before. But later he found out that even that was not the possible limit.

After being exposed to it for some time, his body seemed to nearly instinctively remembered how to produce the Godly KI itself- well vaquily at least. Not just to absorb it into his regular energy, but to for all purposes become SSj God again.

It took him a few years, but he finally managed to learn to activate it again and to keep using it for at least a few minutes. A time limit he had been able to widen more and more since in the following time.

Even that however, he knew would not be enough against this two opponents.

But in the end he had figured out to go even one step further... by combining the God Ki directly with his SSj form. He knew he could reach a state in that he would actually be a match for these two. The only question was how long he would be able to keep it up.

It was better to keep this as a trump card, he thought.

Trunks saw that Freezer was reacting not exactly mildly about Cell´s sneak attack and was now furiously firing back at him.

As much as he personally hated the tactic, it was probably better to pretend to be more hurt than he truly was and hold his full power back a little while longer.

With some luck the two would weaken each other and give him a chance to take them both out. Still, every drop of saiyan blood in him sreamed out against this. He needed to remind himself that he was facing two super-strong enemies at once and that he needed to defeat **both** of them to save this Earth... and all the others.

... And that with some luck the others might come to help him soon. So for now he decided to lay low and buy more time. No matter how much he hated it.

For the moment, Trunks let himself fall to the ground.

xxx

`A interesting plan,´ he heard a voice in his mind. A voice that was pretty much like his own. `But you are right. It is disgraceful. Let us just hope that it will work out.´

`You are not real,´ Trunks responded silently. `So shut up.´

`Are you sure about that?´ the voice asked him. `I could offer you much - all the knowledge, techniques you don´t know about...´

`I **am** sure,´ Trunks repeated sharply. `The Priest is long dead. You are just a fragment of memories, a small piece of my own mind that had become corrupted.´

`He is,´ the voice admitted. `You are right. He is long gone and passed on... But not all of him is. His experience and knowledge is still here, burried in the depths of your own mind. If only you wanted to... you could become him.´

`Never!´ Trunks replied.

`If you say so. We can only hope that your decision won´t cost this Earth their existence... and this entire timeline to spend more years under tyranny,´ the voice added. `You know how bad your chances are to defeat both of this opponents by yourself... like you are **now**.´

`I **won´t** be by myself,´ Trunks responded. `When the others receive my message they will come to help me. I just have to keep this Cell and Freezer occupied until then.´

`" **When"** they get your message...´ the voice cut in. `There is no telling how long it might take them to react to it. There is no telling if your Portal will be able to pinpoint this exact point in this timeline. They could take them hours or even days to arrive here. Are you willing to take that risk?´

`Yes, I am,´ he replied. `... before I am willing to let something like you influence my mind.´

`We will see.´

xxxxxxx

"You really want to come with us Vegeta?" 17 asked him.

"Of course," the Saiyan Prince replied. "I am burning for a chance to fight Freezer and Cell again, even if they are not exactly the same."

"I would like to come with you as well," Son Goku said, "but..."

"It is too bad that Lord Beerus wants you to come with to this investigation about who this Goku Black could really be," Vegeta stated grinning. "So I guess it is all on me this time... and the two Androids of course," he added as he saw both 17 and 18 looking at him.

"That is so unfair," Goku said.

"You had already agreed to go with Lord Beerus Goku," Mirai Trunks reminded him. "And you know that Black is just as much a threat like this Empire of this new version of Cell mentioned in the message."

As if it couldn´t have come any worse, he thought. New versions of Freezer and Cell, far stronger than they had been back then... and Black as well.

"Okay okay," Goku replied. "I will leave them to you Vegeta," he said.

The Saiyan Prince only smiled.

xxxxxxx

 _Freezer´s Empire Universe_

Cell and Freezer were now exchanging volleys of ki blasts and punches.

Trunks, still pretending to be hurt, was watching from the ground. He knew his two enemies would not fall for his bluff for long. As soon as they would be able to put their attention off from each other for a few moments, they would target him again. But right now they were fully occupied.

He could only hope his plan to combine his God Ki with his SSJ form would work out. And that it would be enough.

Suddenly however Cell moved both his arms and made a gesture Trunks knew all too well... Solar Flare.

But it seemd this Freezer knew this move as well from his battles with this world´s Z-fighters decades ago. And he closed his eyes just in time to not be fully blinded.

"Nice attempt," he commented. "But I already knew this trick."

"Of really?" Cell replied coldly. "Maybe you should open your eyes and take a look then."

Freezer realized that his opponent had indeed not taken the chance to attack him... the opposite, he went on distance.

Trunks was witnessing what was happening from the ground as well. Cell had extended his tail... and something seemed to be moving inside. He realized instantly what the monster was doing... he remembered the Cell Games. Oh no! he thought.

He started to move, attempting to stop it. But it was already too late.

Before any of them to had been able to react - Freezer distracted and no idea what was happening and Trunks powered down and too far away because of his own plan - Cell´s tail had already spat out a blue colored, organic looking object, then another one... that quickly stretched out themselves, showing heads, arms and legs.

It were smaller copies of Cell himself. Before either Trunks or Freezer could do anything else, they had placed themselves between them and their creator, giving him time to spawn more of them.

A few seconds later there were six Cell Juniors floating next to him in front of Freezer and Trunks.

This couldn´t have come any worse, he thought.

* * *

It is a quite short chapter.

Yes, what Trunks is planning to do here is SSJ Blue. Or simply active SSj + active God Ki.

In opposite to Goku and Vegeta however he had never be formally trained to use God Ki, but had to use it by trial and error. That is the reason he had needed a decade to halfway access the form, when Goku and Vegeta did it in less than a year.


	11. Chapter 11: Goodbye

**Chapter 11**

This was bad, Trunks realized. More than bad.

Actually it was terrible.

With the Cell Juniors he had created, Cell now technically outnumbered both his opponents. Unless Trunks and Freezer were able to destroy them quickly, he could simply wear them both down.

And beside that, Trunks was not able for how much longer he would be able to hold this form.

Cell now restarted his attack... at the alien Warlord. This time backed up by two of his Cell Juniors.

Suddenly however one of the Cell Juniors was hit by a blast coming from the ground. It came from the saiyan, they all realized instantly... who as it seemed wasn´t as weakened as it had looked.

"Freezer!" Trunks called out. "It seems you are in a bit of a peril here."

"Oh really? I wouldn´t have noticed it without you Saiyajin," the Alien Lord replied sarcastically.

"Don´t misunderstand me. We are enemies and if I ever have the chance, I will bring you down," Trunks stated.

"I don´t think you will get that chance saiyajin," Freezer replied smoothly. "Many others of your kind have tried. But now they are all dead. But I am still here."

`Not where I came from,´ Trunks thought sardonically. `In my world it is **you** who is long gone.´ But he didn´t say it loud.

In this moment Freezer fired a powerful blast, that managed to directly hit one of the Cell Juniors... and completely disintigrating their common opponent with one shot.

"Impressive," Trunks remarked drily. He realized the same power would be directed against him sooner or later. "But no matter how powerfull you are, you can not keep this up forever. We work together now or we are **both** dead."

"Well, maybe you have a point here saiyajin," Freezer responded. "I will accept your offer for now. At least until reinforcements arrive to help me out."

"I don´t think your regular troops could do anything against these creature Freezer," Trunks stated. "Unless you have any more fighters of Cooler´s calibre."

Freezer clenched his teeth. Trunks knew he had called his bluff. His army would get annihilated if they got involved here and he knew it.

He would cooperate with the saiyan for the moment, he decided. But only as long as it was necessary... and then...

xxx

Meanwhile Doctor Gero was still watching the battle from a save distance.

Cell would win, he knew for sure. His creation was even more powerful than he had expected. And then this world and the entire Empire would be being ruled by both of them. Soon.

xxxxxxx

 _Back in the Past-timeline (Goku Black Arc)  
_

Goku and Vegeta, along with Mirai Trunks, were just getting ready for their trip to his future, to fight the enemy called Goku Black once again.

And at the same time, the two versions of 17 and 18 had just arrived in their world were preparing to travel to yet another future, the one of Freezer´s Empire, to save and recover their own Trunks.

They had received his message, around the same time they had reunited with Pan and Marron. As it looked things were serious. Not only Freezer, but as it seemed another Cell, far more powerful than the one they knew. It was clear that Trunks would need help.

Two others who had also been reunited were Mirai Trunks and Future Mai. He had barely been able to believe it, as he saw that she wasn´t dead like he believed. But he had been more than happy and relieved. He had been shocked however as he heard that it had been Future 18 of all people who had saved her from Black.

Pan and Marron - Future 18´s daughter and well, `stepdaughter´ - were now standing with them and their Future Bulma who had come with them. They had just exchanged their stories about what happened.

The Eighteen from this timeline was meanwhile looking at them in nearly morbid curiosity, the little Marron - her own daughter - standing right next to her, holding her hand. And her husband standing not far away. Krillin also seemed unsettled... and visibly nervous around the doubles of herself and her brother. Not that she could hold it against him. **This** 18 had supposedly not only killed him, but the half planet.

17 on his part admitted he liked the Eighteen standing over there already more than her counterpart next to him who he had known for years, despite having barely talked a few words with her.

At least she was pretty similar to his real sister - being married to Krillin, having her own Marron, having known 16 and been part of their little group back then... and beside that also such little things like **not** being a mass-murderer who had slaughtered half the planet or having been allied with this madman called The Priest to throw the entire Multiverse into chaos.

As far as it came to him, this wasn´t his sister, but a twisted mockery of her. The only reasons he tolerated her were:

a) In the first years she had been able to hold up the illusion that Marron´s mother had still been alive. And he had been happy to spare his niece the knowledge that both her parents had died within just a few months until she was older.

And b) She was together with Trunks, who he respected. Still, he couldn´t fully understand how the half-saiyan had been able to get over a past like theirs.

Sometimes it crossed his mind that the true reason he had accepted her was simply that in his entire life, that at that point basically consisted of a long list of battles and bloodshed, there was nobody else left close to him (with the exception of his mother and their own version of 16 of course). If he would have made friends who were not fighters, they would be at risk of being targeted by his enemies. So he didn´t made any.

Had it been so bad that they only remaining people who could come close to him were his enemies? If that was truly the case, then he felt sorry for Trunks.

But on the other hand, he admitted he was not truly sure about it. Or if he even wanted to completely understand the relationship between Trunks and his pseudo-sister.

xxx

For the native Eighteen, it was similar bizarre to see these two standing before her. For a moment, the thought crossed her mind to call her brother, just to see his reaction.

But then she decided to let it be. During their last talk, her own Seventeen had made it more than clear that he had his hands full with his job as a park ranger. And she had the impression was only a world threatening disaster would be able to get him away from there.

By what the other 17 had mentioned, he had a similar job. Maybe not to the same extreme though. Still the only reason that he had even come here was that it was his niece who was missing, as he had admitted at one point.

The 18 of his world was dead, she remembered. Just like their Krillin. She had already heard this from Marron. She asked herself how this 17 was dealing with this.

For a moment... she was only glad, glad that her husband was alive, that her own family was still intact, that her daughter and her brother didn´t had to deal with a situation like this.

xxx

"Are you sure you can do this by yourself?" Goku asked the two Androids. "I mean it sounds like these guys are incredible strong..."

"We are not exactly weak either," Android 17 responded.

That was an understatement. Both he and 18 had started out stronger than a SSj, without any training at all. Just thought the enhancements Doctor Gero had performed on them. And they had been able to reach even higher levels through training, faster and easier than most other beings.

But would it be enough against **this** opponents?

The truth was that ke knew all too well that they could really need Goku and the other´s help. But he also knew that these timeline´s Z-fighters had their own problems.

By what he heard this enemy called Goku Black had laid waste to the world of Trunks counterpart and even showed up here. And by what he had overheard from Goku, Vegeta and Beerus, he was getting stronger.

Seventeen admitted he had a bad feeling about this.

"And as I heard, you have your own opponent to take care of," he said loud.

"Ah yes, I guess we do," Goku replied. "It is just... a much stronger Cell? And Freezer too? - that sounds interesting."

"This is a serious matter," 17 reminded him. "And by what you have said, this Goku Black character seems to constantly getting more powerful."

"Well, I am confident that we can take him," Goku responded grinning.

"It would probably help a lot if you two, for once in your life, could actually bring yourself to actually take your opponent down when you have the chance," Piccolo cut in.

Son Goku was just looking at him a bit sheepishly for a moment.

"Don´t play dumb with me Goku. You know exactly what I mean. During the last fight you could have easily turned SSJ Blue and probably defeated Black right away. But now you will have to fight an even stronger version of him than the last one," the Namek stated.

"You and Vegeta have both this habit not to use your full strength and drag fights out. And this was not the first time. How many chances did you have to put Buu out **before** he blew up the planet?"

"Okay okay, I admit that you have us here. I guess that is just a weakness of us," Goku said, crinching a bit. He knew all too well it was true.

"Is there any point in bringing this up right now?" Vegeta asked.

"Well," 17 said with a grin, "we just wanted to point out that maybe you should, for once in your life, end a fight quickly, before this Goku Black character completely destroys this other timeline´s future."

Goku in return gave him an a bit awkward smile.

"Ah, I guess we can try at least," he said and laughed a little.

The his expression turned serious.

"I promise we will do everything to stop him," he stated, looking from him to the other Future Trunks who was about to enter his time-machine together with them and back.

"Okay, we are ready," Future Bulma said. She had once again prepared the Portal and was about to activate it.

She, Marron and Pan would return to their own world. Or rather the past timeline they had originally been trying to reach. While 17 and 18 would head for the source of Trunks call.

"I guess it is goodbye then," Marron said sadly to the counterparts of her mother and her father... and her own younger self. It pained her, seeing them like this. It reminded her too much of her own childood. Of what she had lost and would never get back.

"Yes, goodbye," Pan said to them as well and also to Goku, Bulma, Vegeta and the others.

"It was nice to meet you," 18 mentioned with an a bit dry smile to Future Mai and Mirai Trunks next to her.

He and her own Trunks were so similar in so many way... and yet different. They both shared the same history, the same experiences - because of her.

The great difference was that in his world The Priest had never brought her and 17 back to life.

"Good luck," Future Mai responded. "It was nice to meet you."

xxx

It was not long ago, Mai remembered, that 17 and Pan had a discussion with the saiyans Goku and Vegeta, about several ways to get stronger.

They had already brought up the way of absorbing the power of God Ki into their regular forms. Something that they saiyajins in all their timelies had already done. Then Super Saiyajin Blue - that, as Pan said, her father had figured out on his own after training by himself for several years.

But there was one other form.

"So SSj4?" Goku asked curiously. "There is actually such a form?"

"Ah yes," Pan replied, "But Dad always says it would be better not to try to reach it, unless there is really no choice. And Dad can not reach it anyway."

"Why? I mean Trunks is a saiyan as well after all?" Goku wondered.

"And why does he think this transformation is so dangerous?" Vegeta questioned.

"Dad was born without a tail," Pan stated. "And..."

"You see, to reach SSj4," Marron explained, "you need to simply said cross the Super Saiyajin with the Oozaru transformation."

"I see, that could be a problem," Goku responded.

"Oozaru transformation?" Future Mai asked.

"She is speaking about the ability of us saiyajin to turn into giant apes during the full moon," Vegeta explained. "The ones who can not control this form will just rampage and destroy everything in their wake until they turn back."

"It is not only that," Marron said. "If you attempt to use it and SSj at the same time, you turn into a **Golden** giant ape instead of the normal one. And even saiyans who can control their regular Oozaru can normally not control this form."

"Eh!?" The Pilaf Gang gang, who had overheard the entire conversation - as well as the Mai from the future - froze as they full comprehended what had just been said.

They all had the same picture rising up in their minds. A memory that happened a long time ago, long before the Dragon Balls had turned them young again...

... as suddenly, right in the middle of the night, they had been woken up by a terrible noise... and were instantly faced with the sight of a giant monstrous ape, that was growling wildly while laying waste to Pilaf´s old castle.

Their eyes gulped out and their mouth went wide open.

"No! No! No! - you should not try this!" all four of them - the small Pilaf Gang and the older Mai - called out at the same time in choir.

"You should not do this at all!"they called out together. Especially the two Mais remembered their complete shock as they woke up in their nightdress ad saw the rampaging monster through the window.

Goku and Vegeta only scoffed at their weird reaction. A moment later Goku remembered how he had woken up naked in the ruins of that castle. Had he back then turned into his Oozaru form and they had seen him? That would explain a lot. But who cared? That was a long time ago.

The two Bulma´s however realized exactly why they reacted like this and exchanged a knowing smile.

But they all agreed in the end that having a golden haired super Oozaru running around was simply too dangerous, except in the truly - truly - most dire situation.

xxxxxxx

 _Freezer´s Empire timeline_

He and Freezer were still fighting back to back, with their opponents surrounding and teaming up on them.

While the Cell Juniors were far below them in power, Cell himself was at the least a match for both of them. And constantly being backed up by his spawn, he was even more deadly.

Trunks was doing his best to preserve his energy, but he knew it was only a matter of minutes until he lost his current form.

He could only hope that the others would be able to exactly pinpoint the time when he had send his message... and come quickly.

Trunks exchanged another few blows with a couple of the attacking Cell Juniors, who were charging at him from both sides. After a few seconds they would draw back, taking position behind their creator and in line with their `brothers´. They had already repeated this circle a few times with both him and Freezer.

In that way they were slowly but for sure wearing them down.

Freezer had already eliminated one of the Cell Juniors. That left five of them and Cell himself of course.

But Trunks feared if he was trying to do the same, he would loose too much of his remaining energy. He was not sure how long he would be able to hold this form anyway.

And if he run out of stamina, he knew he was as good as dead.

He could only pray that help would arrive soon. The blue aura around him started to flicker. It would not be long anymore.

xxxxxxx

Future Bulma had activated the Portal. 17 and Mirai 18 were the first to pass through.

Then Bulma deactivated the connection that led to the world of Freezer´s Empire and changed the configurations to their own. And reactivated it a moment later.

At the same time, Goku, Vegeta and Mirai Trunks had together entered his time-machine, that was slowly raising up from the ground. A second later the machine disappeared with a bright flash and the three were on their way to face Goku Black.

A second later Future Bulma, Marron and Pan were about to leave this world as well. For a last time they turned around to the assembled group of this reality, consisting of this time´s version of Bulma Bulma, the small Pilaf Gang, the older Mai, Past Eighteen, Krillin, small Marron, Piccolo and Gohan.

"Goodby then," they said to them, before they entered the Portal as well and were leaving this timeline.

xxxxxxx

 _Freezer´s Empire timeline_

Another Cell Junior suddenly appeared in front of him. But this time Trunks was too slow... and he was caught by a hard punch in the gut.

A second later he dropped out of his transformation and was back in his base form.

This was it, he thought.

But he would not simply give up. He would fight to the end.

He landed a hard kick on his opponent, with all he had still left. But without any Super Saiyajin transformation, it had barely any effect on the small Cell clone.

At least it distracted him enough to get a bit of distance between them. If only he had a Senzu bean left. But he had used the last ones they had left from their last trip to the past during their battle with Cooler´s army.

"Oh - too bad, can it be that you are running out of use saiyajin?" Freezer asked him tauntingly. He was currently fighting three Cell Juniors at once, while the real Cell was standing back, watching.

Freezer was visibly strained as well, but he was still holding himself.

"Not yet," Trunks responded. He unleashed a Solar Flare and blinded two of his opponents, that gave him once again a bot more time.

"A good move," he suddenly heard a voice from behind him - Cell. He had moved. "But not good enough."

Trunks felt the familiar feeling of a ki blast burning through his body. As he looked downwards he saw a large hole in his stomach. And he felt his knees giving in.

So that was it. It was over.

xxxxxxx

"Now, who do we have here?" Doctor Gero, who had been watching the battle from a save distance suddenly heard a voice coming from behind him... a voice he knew... from a long time ago and barely remembered.

As he turned around, he saw nobody else than... Lapis and Lazuli.. that were their names if he remembered correctly. Two teenage deliquents he had used as candidates for his experiments - back around the time Lord Freezer first took over Earth - failed experiments who had never been finished. Later he had used their genetic material for Cell.

But these two were completely finished Androids by what his sensors told him. This could only mean one thing...

"Well Doc, I never though we would meet you here," the dark haired boy continued. "But we have no time, we need to rescue a friend of us." 17 grinned. "Bye."

Both of them raised their hands and charged up a ki blast.

`No,´ Gero thought, `it could not end like this - not after all his work, not after all he had achieved.´

As he thought this, they were blasting him away.

xxxxxxx

Cell saw down at the dieing form of the saiyan. This one had been powerful. But not enough.

He was ready to finish him of.

Freezer was still occupied with three of his Cell Juniors, while the other two were standing next to him.

Just as he raised his hand however, one of the Cell Juniors next to him was hit by a powerful blast that send him flying away. One moment later he himself was hit by another one that pushed him backwards.

As he turned around he saw who had fired them, two Androids he had never seen before. But he remembered them from the memories of his past existence as the Ne-Me-Sys system - the never finished Number 17 and 18.

He realized instantly that they must be from another universe.

Where was Doctor Gero? Had these two eliminated him?

He had no time to think about this, as the two egaged his Cell Juniors... to make their way to the wounded saiyajin before him.

* * *

This chapter ended the Dragon Ball Super part of the story. The rest of the Goku Black Arc will play out without the characters from Trunks reality.

More or less like it was in canon. Or maybe a bit different thanks to their influence.


	12. Chapter 12: Last attempt

**Chapter 12  
**

 _Freezer´s Empire_

18 was fighting her way through the group of Cell Juniors. Trying desperately to get to Trunks.

Trunks who had just been shot, who was injured and not longer conscious... and was slowly dieing.

17 was helping her. But it was not only against the Cell Juniors... but also against their creator himself.

As he and his alternate world sister were getting their way free, they were suddenly confronted by Cell.

"Go and help Trunks," Seventeen had told her. "I will deal with him."

"You are Android 17," the being known as Cell-X - or simply Cell, stated coldly.

"I am."

"In this universe Doctor Gero had never finished his work on you," Cell informed him.

"Is that so?"

"Your power that you have shown is impressive. And it by far exceeds the data about your model. Your sister´s as well. Tell me, how did this happen?"

"We have trained," Seventeen remarked simply.

"Really? I would have never expected you to be able to raise your power that much. It seems Doctor Gero had underestimated your potential greatly."

"Yes? You have not even seen everything yet. I am not even at full strength," 17 responded.

"You can not hope to win. You might be a powerful Android, but I am the Ultimate Model, designed to combine the strengths and potential of all other fighters."

"Oh yes? You know, the Cell of my world had been talking like that as well. And in the end he got defeated by a ten year old Super Saiyajin," 17 commented. "Let us beginn."

They exchanged the first couple of blows. Mostly to test out their opponent. Both of them blocked or evaded them quite easily.

Then they begann to fight in earnest.

It was true. Over the years since his activation, 17´s powers had grown enormously.

And to be honest, that was actually an understatement. His growth had far exceeded any possible expectations.

At least before the saiyans had begann to reach God Level. But what the truly astonishing thing was how easily he had reached this level. No God Ki training, no ritual, not even high-gravity. Just regular training in normal environment.

From their potential and power, 17 and 18 were by far under the strongest in their entire universe. And both of them were able to gain even greater power quite easily.

A `normal´ opponent would have no chance.

But this one was all but normal.

This version of Cell was even countless times stronger than the being he had known in his own world as well.

The cells he was created from were taken from fighters who had already reached God Level and like the Cell he knew. And it were not only cells, but also combat-data and detailed information about their battles.

He was a combination of all their potential. But that only to a point.

xxx

At the first look at least, Cell seemed like the perfect warrior. At least in theory.

There was however one thing he lacked. It was the thing you in a sense could call... spiritual strength.

Will, determination, understanding... and what you would enlightment. Cell knew nothing of it.

While he possessed a tremendous genetical power and incredible technical knowledge, he knew nothing about the more spiritual side of the martial arts. The abilities to truly understand your own nature and soul. To be in sinch with the rest of the universe. To improve yourself and rise beyond your own limits by nothing but your own willpower.

This were concepts he didn´t understood and possibly never would. Strength - that was for him just a mixture of the right genetics and combat data. Everything beyond that just didn´t exist to him.

Just like the Ne-Me-Sys AI he came from. Just like Doctor Gero had programmed it. Just like practically every other version of Cell across the multiverse.

xxx

That was also the reason for his reaction to his current fight with Android 17.

He could just not believe it. It defied every bit of data he possessed.

The other Android was supposed to be an inferior model. Even if this one was from a parallel world, a quick scan from one of the spy-drones he had sweeping the area, had told him that this 17´s design was virtually ientical to the one Doctor Gero intended to create in this one.

So why? - How was it possible that the other Android was actually holding himself against him?

Cell had been completely dumbfounded as he saw 17 parrying a few of his strikes and langing some of his own.

And on top of that blocked an onslaught of ki attacks with his barrier.

In some distance, he saw Android 18 also dominating a group of his Cell Juniors, while Freezer was taking care of the rest of them.

His artificially created mind practically refused to accept it. How was that possible?

Did Number 17 and 18 truly had **that** much potential to improve?

xxxxxx

 _"So it seems this is how it ends,"_ Trunks once again heard the voice of The Priest in his head.

He knew he was loosing consciousness.

 _"If you are going to die here, I will go with you."_

"No - you died a long time ago," Trunks responded. "All what is left of you is an echo of the real Priest´s memories inside my mind."

 _"Are you so sure about that?"_ the voice asked him challenging.

 _"If you truly think so, if your really believe that I am just a set of memories, then what are you afraid of? Why do you not embrace me? After all, I also have great knowledge. That I am sure, you can need... especially in this fight."_

For that question, Trunks had no real answer.

If this `being´ were truly just memories given form by his own sub-consciousness, what was the danger?

And The Priest´s experience, especially his experience with the use of God Ki, could truly be useful here. Not to mention his fighting techniques.

But what if he was wrong and there was truly more to it. What if it was truly something trying to take over his mind?

xxx

18 was now kneeling beside Trunks. She was taking out the bag with shenzu beans she had taken with her.

"Trunks, come on - please," she pleaded to him as she fed him the bean.

He opened his eyes.

"Eighteen," he said quietly. "You are here."

"Of course I am," she answered.

"How are the girls?"

"We have found them. They had been send to another world. But we have found them and brought them home," 18 told him.

"Good."

"Then we have gotten your message an came for you."

Suddenly a Cell Junior charged at her from behind and she turned around and blasted the attacker.

The small Cell copy however was still alive ad started to regenerate.

Trunks reacted. He powered up again into SSJ God and blasted him once again, together with 18.

This time their combined blasts completely vaporized the creature.

But now they had their **true** opponents to worry about. It were Freezer and the real Cell who were the real threat.

xxx

"How - how were you able to get this strong?" Cell asked 17. "According to the data you should not nearly be as strong."

17 snorted.

"You know **nothing** Cell. Doctor Gero had always far underestimated the ability of other fighters to grow. That is truly nothing new," he stated.

"By the way, what about Freezer over there? How much had he improved over the time? Would Doctor Gero had anticipated his ability to grow that much stronger, when he had first seen him years ago? I don´t think so."

"Yes - I see what you mean," Cell responded thoughtfully. "It seems our creator was not perfect after all. I will keep that in mind in the future."

"Perfect?" 17 commented sarcastically. "Yes, he was far from it. Just like his so called perfect creation. Like I said, the Cell of my world was killed by a ten year old... and you will not do much better either."

"We will see about that," Cell replied.

He went into an fighting stance, eyeing his opponent... before he made another attack.

xxx

Freezer growled quietly.

He just disintigrated another Cell Junior.

But he was not happy about that small victory at all. Quite the opposite.

He had started to breath heavily. He was getting exhausted and he knew it. That was the reason this Cell creature had spawned that little cannon-fodder in the first place - to wear him down. He was sure of it.

For the moment he was still holding himself. But soon he would drop out of his Golden Form.

He was looking around.

The two Androids who had arrived were clearly allies of the saiyajin calling himself Trunks.

Cell and the dark haired Android were still fighting each other. So far either seemed to have gained the upper hand. The powerlevel of this creature named Cell seemed maybe a bit higher, but not enough to decide the battle. And 17 possessed great skill on top of unlimited stamina.

For Freezer however it didn´t matter who of them would win. They were all his enemies.

And the damned saiyajin had now fully recovered his strength through that bean the female Android had given him. He recognized the things. That cursed Son Goku and his comrades had used them as well back then, before he had defeated Goku and then destroyed them all afterwards.

`Damn it,´ Freezer thought.

That meant he was slowly running out of power, while his opponents still had theirs. And in the Android´s case, they would never run out of it matter how long they fought.

That meant over short or long, he could only loose.

But he would not let it end like this.

Freezer decided to act. He had enough of this. He would end it one way or the other. To his luck, there was always one alternative open to him. It would be costly for him, but he didn´t care about that right now. They were far too powerful to be left alive. He needed to get rid of them all, no matter the cost. Or he risked loosing **everything**.

Freezer eliminated the other Cell Junior he had been struggling with... and started to rise up into the air. He only hoped that none of them would realize what he was doing before he was ready.

He now flew upwards in an incredible speed.

And this of course had not been unnoticed by the other fighters.

That and the fact that he was charging up energy in his hand.

Of course **this** , the others would notice for certain.

He just had to be quicker than them.

Freezer took aim. Not at his enemies, neither the one group or the other...

... but down on the planet itself.

xxxxxxx

Cell had now fired a Kamehameha at 17, who responded with a blast of his own. And the two attacks clashed in the middle between them.

So far it was not to see which one of them would win the beam struggle.

But their contest never came to an real conclusion.

As both of them realized what Freezer was doing.

Both fighters were exchanging a short look with each other, before they stopped their attacks at nearly the same time. The beam struggle had ended.

Cell admitted the short break was probably a greater avantage for him than for his opponent. In opposite to him, 17 did not loose any energy at all. While he himself was not getting slightly weaker with every minute.

xxx

The AI that had formed his mind tried to see things purely logical. But ever since the super-computer had used it´s own data to activate Cell - since it had transferred itself into this body - this turned out to be sometimes hard.

The sense, the entire concept of Cell´s creation, had always been the idea that he was superior to everyone else in the universe. That was it that what the computer - the same one whose data now filled his mind - had been programmed to think. And the thought that had been intigrated into every fiber of his being.

He **could** have no equal... or even superior.

xxx

"Is he really going to?" 17 exclaimed.

The Android kept an eye on his opponent. While at the same time, he tried to make a move to stop Freezer.

Cell was still standing there, assaying the situation.

... And seeing how his opponent would react.

xxx

Trunks and 18 were seeing it as well.

They realized nearly instantly what Freezer was doing. For Trunks it was actually not the first time that he was seeing this. The fight with the other version of Freezer, he had so many years before.

To their luck Trunks was back at full strength now.

He transformed into the blue SSj God form once again and flew towards Freezer

xxx

Android 17 moved as well. He lifted off the ground to intercept the coming attack.

Or at least he tried to.

Before he could, another blast was send towards him from behind.

"Cell," he called out, as he turned around to block the shot.

"What are you doing? He is going to blow up the planet," the Android yelled.

"I am aware of that," Cell answered casually. "But even if this world is destroyed, from my cellular make-up my body is able to survive in space. **Yours** however is not."

"You," 17 growled.

"The loss of this planet´s resources and manpower will be regretable. But it is an acceptable price to get rid of you all. Besides me, only Freezer... **and** my Cell Juniors can survive in a vacuum."

Seventeen registered what he was saying. He was right. Even if only one or two of his spawn survived the exlosion, Freezer would still be outmatched if he destroyed this Earth.

Sadly Freezer didn´t seem to have fully realized this.

But...

"Not with me," 17 called out. He fired another, one-handed, blast... right at Cell´s face.

This distracted the monstrous Bio-Android only for a few moments, but it gave 17 time to act.

As he saw however, Trunks had already reacted before him.

xxxxxxx

Trunks flew upwards in his SSB form and just in the moment before Freezer unleached his attack, he placed himself between the planet and the blast.

He blocked the attack and then, without too much difficulty, deflected it back into the sky a few moments later.

Freezer had not put too much power into the blast, he knew. As it looked, he kept the energy low to not tip the other fighters off of what he was doing. He had possibly hoped he could charge up his attack, while everybody was concentrating on their other opponents. And nobody would even notice until it was too late.

But here he had underrestimated them badly.

"Not bad saiyajin," Freezer called out. "But I can do this many times more."

He fired two more blasts with his finger.

But Trunks saw that 18 and 17 had already moved to intercept them.

His task however was to stop Freezer from doing anything more. As quick and effective as possible.

Trunks had made up his mind.

He flew with his full speed towards Freezer. And at the same time a a greenish aura formed around him.

Then Trunks unleashed a wave of evergy - God Ki - ki that quickly took a form ressembling a large shimmering snake.

For a split-second Freezer starred at the bizarre looking ki attack in surprise. The saiyan had not shown a technique like this before. In fact it looked different than any attack-technique Freezer knew of.

But he sensed that it was not strong enough to do any serious harm to him.

Smirking confidently, he lifted both his arms to block it. For a moment, he felt a short pain on one of his underarms. Nearly as if the fake snake had actually bitten him, he thought grinning. But he had barely felt it.

"Was that everything saiyan?" he asked Trunks mockingly. "Honestly, I had expected a bit more from you. It seems you are weaker than I thought."

"Oh yes, that was everything Freezer," Trunks replied equally confident, "and you are finished. You just don´t know it yet."

Freezer grew angry at the tone of the damned saiyan. It was nearly like with Son Goku back then.

He attempted to charge up another attack, a far stronger one. He would blow this entire planet out of space, even if it caused him all of his strength.

But then he realized that something was wrong.

* * *

This wil probablyl be the second last chapter of this story. So the next one will be the end.

Anyone who had red my story Dragon Ball Alternates, might possibly recognize the last move Trunks had made as one of the techniques of The Priest.


	13. Chapter 13: New Day

**Chapter 13**

 _Freezer´s Empire Universe_

Freezer was trying to charge up another attack. But he noticed instantly that something was wrong. Somehow he was not able to channel his energy correctly.

"What have you done to me?" he growled.

"This is a technique that I have taken from an old enemy," Trunks told him. "I have injected a small bit of my own especially manipulated ki into you. Manipulated for a special purpose," he explained. "It is right now disrupting the energy-flow inside your body."

"What? No - that can not be..." that was the last thing the the alien overlord would ever say in his life.

"Goodbye Freezer," Trunks said stoically.

Without another word, he charged up a powerful Burning Attack, that he fired and completely obliterated him.

"Good job Trunks," 17, who was still standing on the ground, commented.

xxx

That meant one of their two opponents was gone. The other one however...

Cell-X knew that against all of them together, even with his enormous power, he was outmatched. Even more with the fact that the two other Androids will never tire out. In opposite to himself.

All of his Cell Juniors had been destroyed and creating more would only cost him even more of his already faning energy. Too much.

And the saiyajin had just eaten one of these beans and was once again at nearly full strength.

So he decided for the most `logical´ course of action... Go for the weakest.

He moved instantly and reappeared right behind 18. Like the rest of them, she had been concentrating on Freezer and his attempted attack down on the planet. So she an the others didn´t notice him until it was too late.

Before 18 had even fully realized it, Cell had grabbed her and twisted one of her arms on her back. And at the same time, with his other hand, he was charging up a blast and aiming it at his captive.

"None of you moves," he said to 17 and Trunks. "Or your friend here dies," he threatened. "I will leave this planet now. If one of you tries to stop me, I will shoot her."

18 starred at him in anger. And, as she admitted, embarassment that she had been caught off-guard like this.

"No - don´t let this bastard get away," she told them.

Trunks and 17 exchanged a short silent look.

"Well, I guess that leaves us no choice, right?" Seventeen stated. "Trunks - you remember what we have talked about during your last visit in our timeline?"

He nodded.

"I do," he replied.

"You don´t need to do this Cell," 17 told him. "Doctor Gero is dead. You don´t have to follow what he had programmed you to anymore. You never had to. Me and 18 broke free of him. So can you if you want to."

"Be quiet," Cell replied. "You two have betrayed your purpose. We Androids were created for world domination by the great Doctor Gero. By turning away from it, you and your sister have spurned his gift and your potential. Why would I choose a worthless existence like you? I say it again, let me go or I will kill her.

I was created directly from the AI of Doctor Gero´s super computer. I am the living embodiment of his ambitions. And I won´t be denied."

"I see," 17 answered. "I guess it was pointless to try to reason with you."

"Worthless?" Trunks called out. During their short exchange, he had moved a few steps further away from 17 - subtly trying to corner Cell from two angles at once. "These two have broken free from someone else control. They have made their own lives and founded families, have children. And you call that worthless?"

"A foolish human mindset," the being called Cell-X replied. "Nothing of it has any meaning in the great scheme of things."

"I think we have talked enough," 17 said.

He begann to charge up a blast. Since he wasn´t loosing any energy, he didn´t have to hold anything back. So he powered up his attack more and more.

"Stop it," Cell called out. "Right now. Or your sister dies."

"Oh, have we forgotten to mention it?" Seventeen said, now suddenly grinning. "This woman is not my sister."

"What?" Cell now called out in surprise. "That is impossible. She..."

"You know that just like you, we are capable of travel between the universes, right?" 17 stated. "My true sister died over eleven years ago. She is an alternate version of her. One I couldn´t care less about," he told him.

"No. That..." Cell said aghast.

"So I won´t have a problem to kill both of you," 17 declared coldly.

He now raised his hand and aimed to blast, ready to shoot right through 18 to get to him.

"Wait - 17 don´t do this," Trunks called out as well, seemingly in panic.

He knew that Seventeen didn´t like his timeline´s version of his sister. Even if Trunks himself came to love her despite everything what happened in their past. Even if Marron came to see her as a second mother. 17 never really warmed up to her. But he would be willing to kill her like that just to take out an enemy?

At least that was what it looked like for everyone watching. This was the moment Trunks made his move. He charged forward to wrestle 18 out of Cell´s grasp.

Cell, who was still completely surprised by the sudden revelation, was caught completely off guard.

Cell-X´s mind might have started as that of a computer. But since his data was copied into a body of flesh and blood, he was also affected by things like shock and surprise and could be distracted by them. Like now.

He didn´t even notice Trunks until he had reached him and ripped 18 out of his arms.

"You," Cell shouted. He realized he had been tricked.

Trunks had already moved again and was now already a few meters away from him, holding 18 in his arms.

In this moment 17 unleashed his attack and Cell had no more time to deal with the two, he had to counter Seventeen´s blast with one of his own.

The two energy attacks clashed in another beam-struggle.

"Not bad 17," Trunks remarked.

His last meeting with Seventeen during their last visit in their past timeline, he remembered. The Android had told him that, while he made it clear that he still disliked Future 18, if it ever came to it, he would do anything to protect her for Marron´s sake. And by bringing up this conversation, he had made sure that Trunks knew that he was bluffing about threatening to kill her.

A second later he and Mirai 18 joined 17´s attack with their own.

Three blasts were now targeting Cell from different directions. The Bio-Android knew he had lost. Even he had no chance to survive or evade this.

"Why?" that was all he said quietly. `Where did he and Doctor Gero go wrong?´ he asked himself.

He should have been invincible, unfailable. But he had turned out to be neither. Was he in truth just aother flawed creation?

While other versions of Cell would have shouted and screamed loudly - claiming that this couldn´t be, denying their defeat... this one just accepted his fate quietly.

His questions were never answered, as the other two blasts hit him at the same time and started to disintigrate his body.

He could not longer hold back Seventeen´s attack and it united with the other two, helping to finish what they started. A few moments later nothing of Cell was left.

"We have done it," Trunks said.

"You know? For a moment you had me actually worried 17," Mirai 18 told him. "You truly looked like you wanted to do it."

"Oh - believe me, the temptation was there," Seventeen responded with a slight grin.

"That is enough you two," Trunks said to both of them. "We have acually done it." He sighted. "Thank you 17. Your distraction worked perfectly. Even if you had me scared as well for a moment."

"I do my best," he replied. "Well, we came here to find you."

"And as it looked we didn´t come a moment too late," 18 added.

"Yes - I admit without you two, I would have been done for," Trunks stated.

"Well - but it seems it gave us the chance to take care of Freezer and our other enemies as well. So the danger to our world is gone now. If only 16 succeeds with his mission to find the Namekians, we can hopefully restore our Earth," 18 said.

"Marron and Pan will be glad to see you are okay," she told him.

"Yes. But first we still have a few thinks to take care of here," Trunks responded. "Even with Freezer gone, **this** Earth here is still under the control of his troops...

... and that has to change."

xxxxxxx

It was now one day later.

Trunks, 17 and Mirai 18 were getting ready to leave to leave.

In front of them was standing a small contigent of the local resistance against Freezer´s rule.

A bit to their surprise, they found not only regular humans armed with guns and riffles and several aliens, but also this universe´s versions of his mother Bulma (who was leadig the group), Muten Roshi and Goku´s old friend Android 8 under them.

Obviously they had survived not only the invasion by Freezer´s forces, that had wiped out a large chunk of this Earth´s original population, but also the long occupation afterwards.

xxx

After their victory the Trunks and the two Androids had contacted the closest base of Freezer´s forces on the planet and informed them that both Freezer and Doctor Gero were dead. This were the news that nanaged to turn this world around in only a few hours.

After hearing about their Emperor´s death and the fact that **they** were the ones responsible for it, the garrison had surrendered very quickly.

A short time later they had been contacted by the group who introduced itself as the resistance movement against Freezer - who had then began to spread the information about the tyrant´s and his chief scientist´s demise to the rest of the planet... and then further, to the other worlds of the Empire.

As it turned out, while it seemed that many of Freezer´s soldiers seemed actually happy to see him gone and get out from under his rule - that meant constant danger from his murderous moods - others staid loyal to their manical ruler, even in death.

But in the face of the three warriors who defeated Freezer - not to mention Cooler, who was the second strongest warrior in the Empire and Doctor Gero´s strongest creation - the far majority of the Freezer Force surrendered nearly instantly.

During the last day, not only resistance fighters, but also civilians and even a few now disarmed members of Freezer´s forces who hated serving under him, had been more than a bit enthusiastically thanking them for freeing them from the tyrant.

But while Trunks and 17 accepted their thanks with a smile, 18 felt visibly uncomfortable with it. For reasons that were all too understandable given her past, Trunks knew.

He knew a great part of her still hated herself for all the things she had done and probably always would. For the greatest part of her life she had been a monster, not that much better than Freezer. She was not used to people thanking her and seeing her a a hero. It was clear to him how her conscience was still hounding her, whenever she heard someone thanking her for `saving´ them.

All that however was one of the reasons that he finally came to accept and even to love her. Would he ever accepted her if she didn´t hate herself for killing Gohan and all these other people? Certainly not. If she hadn´t put her life on the line to save the universe from The Priest, Freezer and many other threats? If she hadn´t so completely changed? No.

But she did. He had fallen in love with the good side of her, that he had first seen in the past timeline´s 18. And it were moments like this that reminded him of it.

xxx

After everything had settled down and the resistance had taken full control of the planet, they were now ready to depart this world.

From that point on, Trunks and the others would leave the rest to the resistance fighters.

"I have to say, we were more than lucky that you three showed up here," the local version of Bulma told them. "To be honest, we might have been calling us a resistance, but with Freezer´s immense power, there was never actually much we could do. Our only hope had always been that Freezer would some day attack one world or dimension too much and we would find allies who could actually match him."

Trunks had not told the woman that another version of her was his mother. In this reality he never existed, because the planet had been conquered and Vegeta killed, before he would have been born. And he saw no reason to burden her even more with things that could have been.

"Exactly like it actually came to be," Muten Roshi added. "We are sorry that we could do nothing to help your world against Freezer´s attack. But, as Bulma said, we were barely holding out ourselves."

"I know Master Roshi. I understand," Trunks replied. "I would not have expected you to do the impossible. But now I hope things will change for the better in your world... and that for good. Goodbye."

Trunks activated the Portal.

On the other side, they knew Mirai Bulma, Pan and Marron were awaiting them. Together with the Bulma, Vegeta and Gohan from 17´s and Marron´s home-timeline. The same timeline they had all originally attempted to reach, before the malfunction had scattered them across several worlds.

xxxxxx

After they had arrived, Pan literally flew into her father´s arms.

"Dad, you are back," she called out. "I knew you were okay."

Marron and his mother were holding back a bit more, but they as well were hugging him and praising Kami at seeing him back and unharmed.

For the time being, they settled down in the past-timeline. Just like the hundreds of refugees that they had evacuated from their Earth literally in the last minutes and who were at the moment being taken care of by Capsule Corp.

Trunks had not seen or heard the voice of The Priest again. Had it truly only been leftovers of memories in his subconsciousness? Or had a small fragment of his old enemy truly survived somewhere inside his soul? He wasn´t sure. But if whatever was left of him would ever rise up again, then with the help of his friends and family he would overcome it. Of **that** , he was sure.

After a short while they used the Portal once again to contact 16 on his mission to New Namek.

Just as they had hoped, he had found the Namekians. And just as they had also hoped, they had - like in the past - upgraded their Dragon Balls after Freezer´s original invasion on their old home-planet.

That meant they would be able to restore their own Earth and bring all the people back to life who had been killed during the invasion by Freezer´s forces and the planet´s explosion.

The Namekians remembered Bulma of course and agreed to let them use their Dragon Balls

Some of the people they had evacuated would probably rather stay in the past, they knew, than returning to their own Earth, that had been devastated several times and was barely recovering. They could not truly blame them.

They would give everyone of them a choice.

Trunks for his part was happy, since he knew that his home - that he fought for his entire life - would come back.

End


End file.
